Premier Menachem Begin will bring to his meeting with President Reagan next Monday a file of documents that Israel captured in terrorist bases in Lebanon. Among the documents is a transcript of a conversation between Palestine Liberation Organization leader Yasin Arafat and Soviet Foreign Minister Andrei Gromyko held in 1979. These details were disclosed yesterday at a briefing for Israeli reporters by the Premier’s spokesman Uri Porat.
Porat said that the documents that Israel seized in Palestinian bases in Lebanon show that Lebanon was the center of international terrorism. He said that among the prisoners taken by Israeli forces in South Lebanon, were included terrorists from notorious international terror organizations such as the Japanese Red Army, the Italian Red Brigade, and the German Bader-Meinhoff Gang.
BEGIN’S POINTS LISTED
Porat said that the major issues to be brought up by Begin in his meeting with Reagan will be the following:
*The “Peace for Galilee” operation contributed to peace because it abolished the political standing of the PLO. Until the Israeli invasion, the PLO had been a major factor disturbing the peace in the area. But now, this obstacle has been removed.
*There is hope now that a new stability would be established in Lebanon which has been so far divided by many hostile elements.
*Israel would oppose any United Nations peace keeping force in Lebanon. Israel is interested in a multinational peacekeeping force in Lebanon — not an American force — like the multinational force in the Sinai.
*The “Peace for Galilee” operation was a blow to the Soviet Union and its supporters in the Middle East and eventually would strengthen the pro-Western forces in the region.
Porat said that Begin is definitely going to meet with Reagan on Monday and all reports to the contrary which circulated in Washington upon his arrival in New York Tuesday are “unfounded.” He said that Begin would meet with Reagan and Secretary of State Alexander Haig in the White House at II a.m. and later the Premier and the President would have lunch together.
Help ensure Jewish news remains accessible to all. Your donation to the Jewish Telegraphic Agency powers the trusted journalism that has connected Jewish communities worldwide for more than 100 years. With your help, JTA can continue to deliver vital news and insights. Donate today.
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.
