The Soviet Union sharply attacked Israel Friday, charging it with the assassination of Khalil al-Wazir, second in command of the PLO, who was gunned down in his villa in a suburb of Tunis in the early morning of April 16.
Soviet Ambassador Aleksander Belonogov spoke at the Security Council, which continued its debate for a second day on the assassination of the PLO leader. Tunisia had requested an urgent meeting of the council to condemn Israel, who the Tunisians claim is responsible for the action.
The Soviet Union is “indignant,” the Soviet delegate declared, over the action taken by Israel in violation of Tunisia’s territorial integrity.
He said that the murder of Wazir, who was also known as Abu Jihad (father of holy war), was carefully planned and carried out in cold blood by Israel.
Belonogov then charged Israel with “carrying out a wave of terrorism in the occupied territories in its pogrom” against the Palestinian people. But Israel’s “barbarous crimes” were powerless to halt the uprising of the Palestinian people, the Soviet envoy stated.
He called on the Security Council to condemn Israel and take measures against it to prevent such actions in the future.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
