Tension Along Israeli-syrian Lines Highest Since the War — by Yitzhak Shargil

Tension along the Israeli-Syrian cease-fire line was described tonight as the most severe since the Yom Kippur War. Israeli forces on the Golan Heights were reportedly alerted to deal with a possible Syrian attack. While earlier in the day, civilian traffic on the heights was reported normal, by this evening it was restricted to settlers. Sightseers and other outsiders were advised to leave the area. (Ironically the build-up came even as U.S. Secretary of State Henry A. Kissinger told reporters today in Washington that he expected Israeli-Syrian disengagement talks “to start within two weeks” in Washington. At the same time the State Department indicated it was keeping a close watch on the situation developing on the Israeli-Syrian front. See separate story.) The tension resulting from the massive Syrian army build-up was also noticeable on the Syrian side. Syrian soldiers were seen wearing combat helmets. Syrian air force jets streaked over the forward positions throughout the day but did not cross the demarcation line.

Defense Minister Moshe Dayan this afternoon visited the Israeli troops on the Syrian line the forward command post and the headquarters of the army units along the line and also talked with soldiers. He reviewed the situation and inspected the preparedness of some of the units. This evening Dayan said on television that a change in the attitude of the radical Arab states –Syria and Iraq–has brought about a hardening of their position. These developments, he said, contributed to his decision to join now the new government.

LIKUD LEADERS SAY BUILD-UP IS SERIOUS

Meanwhile, Likud leaders Menachem Beigin and Elimelech Rimalt said after a meeting with Premier Golda Meir this evening that the situation on the Syrian front was serious. They complained that they should have been informed of it immediately after last night’s Cabinet meeting. Beigin and Rimalt rejected the views of some journalists who earlier in the day claimed that the Syrian scare was a political gambit to allow Dayan to reverse his decision not to serve in the Cabinet without losing face.

Rimalt said there were “serious and disturbing signs of a possible flare-up” on the Syrian front. The Syrians were said to have deployed significantly large forces of men and armor on the northern section of the cease-fire line. Reports reaching here attributed the move to a visit to Damascus by Soviet Foreign Minister Andrei Gromyko. Gromyko’s arrival there yesterday reportedly encouraged hard-line elements in the Syrian regime who want a tougher stand toward Israel.

Israelis are aware that the Russians have been resupplying Syria with heavy military equipment. They have completely replaced the 1000 tanks Syria lost in the Yom Kippur War and the Syrians now have more armor than they had last Oct. The same applies to their air force and missile strength, sources here said. The bulk of the Syrian army is concentrated in the area between the Israeli enclave in the northern Golan Heights and Damascus. It is also deployed on both sides of the main Kuneitra-Damascus road and on sections of the road that remained in Syrian hands after the war.