The British Government is expected to announce the starting date of the British withdrawal from Palestine by either Wednesday or Thursday, it was learned here today. It is most likely that the announcement will be made by Sir Alexander Cadogan, chief United Kingdom delegate at the United Nations, to the U.N. Implementation Commission for Palestine.
The Cabinet is scheduled to meet tomorrow to discuss the General Assembly’s decision on partition. Although the next major problem after the withdrawal is the date of termination of the Mandate, it is not anticipated that any announcement concerning it will flow from tomorrow’s meeting. Some circles close to the government believe that the Mandate will end a number of months earlier than the final British evacuation on August 1. The British immigration policy in Palestine is also expected to emerge unchanged from tomorrow’s parley.
As preparations for the evacuation were speeded in London, official quarters stressed that the movement would be carried out as impartially as possible. They said that Arab fears that the Jewish areas would be cleared first, permitting rapid military organization of the Jews, would be taken into account. Another source indicated that one reason for the expected rapid withdrawal is that the British wish to avoid possible clashes with the Arabs.
An official spokesman at the Foreign Office denied reports that the government was bargaining with King Abdullah of Transjordan for the continued use of his Arab Legion in the Arab area of partitioned Palestine. He admitted, however, that there had been discussions on the use of British personnel attached to the Legion. Finally, he confirmed that the Premier of Transjordan is due to arrive in London, but refused to fix the date of his visit.
The spokesman also denied that Britain had offered the use of the Palestine police force to the U.N. Commission. However, he indicated that recruiting for the force has not yet been halted.
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