Premier Menachem Begin said last night that Egypt’s request for the withdrawal of the Israeli military mission left behind in Cairo when peace talks were suspended last January did not indicate the end of the peace initiative and should not be seen as a harbinger of war. The nine-man mission, headed by Col. Yaacov Heichal, landed at Ben Gurion Airport this morning. Heichal told reporters, “The Egyptians were just as sad as we were when they bid us farewell. We hope we shall return.” (See related stories, P. 2)
The Egyptian request came as a surprise. But Begin, who first announced it on a television interview last night, reacted calmly. He said he did not believe that President Anwar Sadat has abandoned the peace process and that there are good prospects for renewed Israeli-Egyptian talks. He noted in that connection that Secretary of State Cyrus Vance will be coming to the Middle East early next month to help arrange new meetings.
Speaking of the Israeli military mission’s eight-month sojourn in Egypt, Begin said: “The Egyptians have given them months of courteous hospitality and we are grateful for that. If they do not want them there any longer, then they will come home, they have a home to come to and we will say to them. ‘welcome home.'”
He noted that the delegation had not played a central role in negotiations in recent months. On occasion, they would transmit a message or cable one way or the other, but, on the whole, “we should take off our hats to these excellent officers for their patience,” he said.
TIMING OF OUSTER CITED
Despite Begin’s low-key reaction, political sources here viewed the Egyptian move as an “expulsion” and expressed concern that it represented one in a series of steps by Egypt aimed at heightening tension in the region in order to increase American pressure on Israel for concessions.
These sources maintained that the Egyptians timed their ouster of the Israeli mission to coincide with Vance’s visit. They also noted yesterday’s “war-like threats” by a Cairo radio commentator which they said were the first since Sadat launched his peace initiative in November. The sources also pointed to Egypt’s gross violations of the Sinai interim agreement by stationing 15 battalions in the Sinai limited forces zone where a maximum of eight is permitted under terms of the agreement.
An Israeli television military commentator said well-informed American circles in Tel Aviv acknowledged that U.S. aerial reconnaissance flights confirmed these violations but Israel refrained from lodging a formal complaint so as not to add more obstacles to the resumption of peace talks.
The last message relayed by the Israeli mission was the request for their departure contained in a letter from Egyptian War Minister Mohammed Gamassy to Israeli Defense Minister Ezer Weizman. It said: “I regret to inform you that the National Defense Council has decided that there was no more need in the continued presence of the Israeli military mission to Egypt. We, on our part, have made the necessary arrangements for the return of the military mission on Thursday by an Egyptian Boeing 747.”
The order for the Israeli mission to leave Egypt came several hours after a special four-hour session of the Egyptian National Security Council. Foreign Minister Mohammed Kamaal said after the meeting that Egypt was willing to resume direct talks with Israel but such talks would be a “waste of time” as long as Israel retains “its worn-out concepts.”
REGRET OVER OUSTER OF MISSION
The Israeli mission was notified of the decision by Gen. Ahmed Shaukatt, chief of Egyptian military intelligence. Weizman expressed regret after receiving Gamassy’s message. “For years we have waited for some sort of direct contact which we considered to be of great importance,” he said. “I hope it will return. I hope that the return of the mission from Egypt is just a single move and not the beginning of a process.”
Some sources said the Egyptian move had been contemplated by Sadat for some time because he wants all negotiations with Israel to be conducted through a third party–the U.S.–which now can exert even greater influence in both sides.
It was learned today that the Egyptians refused to accept Begin’s message to Sadat sent last Sunday because it was conveyed through the Israeli military mission. The message was relayed instead by the U.S. It informed Sadat of the Cabinet’s rejection of his request for the return of El Arish in northern Sinai to Egyptian civil administration as a gesture of good-will. The ouster of the military mission came three days later.
The Israeli mission had been stationed at a villa near Cairo until two months ago when it was shifted to a compound in an Egyptian air base near Alexandria.
JTA has documented Jewish history in real-time for over a century. Keep our journalism strong by joining us in supporting independent, award-winning reporting.
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.
