David Ben-Gurion. former Prime Minister of Israel, today announced that he will not attend Israel’s Independence Day military parade, which is to take place in Jerusalem on May 15. It is understood that his refusal to participate in the parade is due to his being opposed to the curtailment of the display of armament at the parade and to the fact that the size of the parade will be limited generally.
The curtailment of military display has been decided upon by the Israel Government in view of the fact that Jerusalem is near the Jordanian border and also because of the opposition of certain governments to the holding of the parade in Jerusalem which they refuse to recognize as the capital of Israel.
Israel Galili, Minister for Information, commenting today on a possible boycott of Israel’s Independence Day Parade by diplomatic representatives of a number of countries said: "Israel asked no one’s permission to transfer its Parliament to Jerusalem and we need no permission to hold our Independence Day parade in Jerusalem." He made the statement in an address to the Industrial and Commercial Club here. Britain has already indicated it would not be represented among observers at the parade and other major powers are expected to follow suit.
Israel’s Cabinet will not hold its regular meeting next Sunday on which Israel will observe its annual Memorial Day for those who died in the War of Independence. The Memorial Day traditionally comes the day before Independence Day, a succession arranged to link the joy of independence with the sorrow for those who died to make it possible.
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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.
