More than 300 university professors issued a protest this week against the illegal but almost open sale of arms by Swiss firms to Egypt. They emphasized that Egypt is preparing to make war on Israel. Two leading Swiss newspapers, Journal de Geneve and La Suisse, have attached great importance to the protest and have backed up its charges. Signers of the protest were lecturers of the Federal Polytechnic School, the Institute of Advanced Commercial and Administrative Studies, and universities and colleges throughout the country.
The purpose of the protest, said its signatories, was to both arouse public opinion on the issue, and to draw the attention of the Swiss authorities to the illegal export of arms to Egypt in the light of the “very grave problem” of Nasser’s threats against Israel.
The “Journal de Geneve” in commenting on the protest, pointed out that, in spite of the fact that the Federal Council prohibited the export of arms to Near Eastern countries nine years ago, “there are ways of getting around the law.” The newspaper cited a firm directed by former SS man Ferdinand Wertner which exports machine tools for military use to Egypt. “Even worse is the almost open export of arms by leading Swiss manufacturers made public during the last trial of two Jews accused of spying for Israel” the paper stressed.
The paper said it learned from several sources that Nasser’s war preparations will be backed by other states. “Similar reproaches are being directed against Swiss firms, reproaches which have only been denied in part, the article pointed out.
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