Canadian Foreign Secretary Says Government is Attempting to Aid Jews in Arab Countries

Mitchell Sharp, the Canadian Secretary of State for External Affairs, told the Jewish Telegraphic Agency today that the Canadian Government was actively engaged in measures to aid the Jews in the Arab countries. In a written reply to questions raised by a JTA correspondent, Mr. Sharp drew a distinction between “deplorable events such as the recent public executions in Iraq and the difficulties of a considerably different nature affecting the bulk of the Jewish community in that country, as well as Jewish communities in other Arab states.”

Mr. Sharp noted that “the Canadian Government has made abundantly clear, through public declarations and other channels, the repugnance with which it views acts like the recent executions, both on humanitarian grounds and because of their potential inflammatory effect on the tense situation in the Middle East.” He pointed out that “at the same time, we have been trying to work out practical ways of assisting some of the unfortunate people involved, and we shall continue to seek means of helping the Jewish community in Iraq.”

Turning to the question of Jews living in other Arab states, the Secretary of State for External Affairs said, “I recognize that in some instances there is cause for concern, although I think you will agree that our most urgent anxiety just now must be for the community in Iraq. It is on this that we are concentrating for the present, while remaining acutely conscious of the continuing difficulties of Jewish communities elsewhere and standing ready to help in any way we can.

“I am glad to be able to say,” he concluded, “that quiet diplomatic efforts by a number of countries, including Canada, have had some effect in improving the situation of Jewish communities in some of the countries concerned.”