President Carters has been invited to address the Knesset on Monday the final day of his visit to Israel that will begin this Saturday night, it was learned today. The Knesset Steering Committee announced that it would permit Premier Menachem Begin and Shimon Peres, chairman of the opposition Labor Alignment, to respond to the President’s speech in English.
The electrifying news yesterday that the President will visit Egypt and Israel this week in a dramatic personal effort to achieve a peace treaty between those countries touched off hectic preparations for the momentous occasion. Carter’s visit is officially a State visit. The President will be welcomed at Ben Gurion Airport by a guard of honor, a dress parade and a 21-gun salute. The last such ceremonials occurred in November, 1977 when President Anwar Sadat of Egypt landed at Ben Gurion Airport, also on a Saturday night.
As with Sadat’s visit, massive security measures will be taken, beginning Friday afternoon, 24 hours before the President’s arrival. Israeli air space will be closed to all commercial traffic several hours before the President is due. Airlines have already been advised to adjust their schedules accordingly. All police leaves have been cancelled. Some 10,000 policemen are expected to take part in the nation-wide security operation during Carter’s stay, under the personal charge of Police Chief Chaim Tabori.
Overall preparations embracing the police, army, post office, press information office and the Jerusalem municipality are being made under the supervision of a special inter-ministerial committee. It is headed by Eliahu Ben-Elissar, Director General of the Prime Minister’s Office.
THE LINEUP OF THE CABINET VOTE
The announcement by the White House at noon Washington time yesterday that Carter will visit Egypt and Israel came only hours after the Cabinet had voted 9-3 to accept Begin’s recommendations regarding new proposals made to him by Carter on Sunday. The nature of the proposals was not disclosed but a Cabinet majority apparently regarded them as an opening to resolve the issues that have blocked a peace treaty with Egypt.
Voting for Begin’s recommendations were Deputy Premier Yigael Yadin; Foreign Minister Moshe Dayan; Defense Minister Ezer Weizman; Minister of Social Betterment Yisrael Katz; Agriculture Minister Ariel Sharon; Religious Affairs Minister Aharon Abu-Hatzeira; Absorption Minister David Levy; Minister of Commerce and Industry Gideon Patt and Finance Minister Simcha Ehrlich.
CLAMOR IN THE KNESSET
He was about to mount the podium to deliver some remarks but Burg dissuaded him on grounds that the Labor opposition would seize the occasion to conduct a full-scale political debate. There were shouts of protest, at which paint Deputy Speaker Benjamin Halevy adjourned the session and MKs rushed to radio and television sets to get the latest news.
President Yitzhak Navon was on a three day tour of Tel Aviv slum neighborhoods when he was informed of Carter’s visit. His immediate reaction was that the American attitude, which he had castigated only a day before as pro-Egyptian, must have changed. He said, “Baruch Habba, welcome to President Carter.”
PREPARING FOR THE CRUSH
The preparations for the visit were given the temporary code name “Operation Eagle, ” the same assigned to President Nixon’s visit to Israel in June, 1974. It was changed today to “Operation Naeh,” an acronym for Nassi Artzot Habrit–President of the United Sates.
Meanwhile, the Jerusalem municipality is trying to decide whether Carter should be quartered at the King David Hotel, the venerable hostelry that has played host to most heads of state visiting Israel or the more modern Hilton Hotel. Mayor Teddy Kollek favors the Hilton which is on the outskirts of the city. He fears massive traffic jams if Carter and his party stay at the King David which is close to the center of the capital.
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