Hadassah Convention Closes with Appeal to U.S. on Arab-israel Issues

A resolution calling upon the United States Government to recommend the resettlement of Arab refugees in Arab countries, when this question comes up in the United Nations, was adopted here last night at the closing session of the national convention of the Hadassah. Such resettlement, the resolution stressed, is “the only realistic solution to the Arab refugee problem.”

In another resolution, Hadassah, believing that “stability and peace in the Middle East are important to America’s security and to the defense of freedom,” called upon the United States “vigorously to pursue” the following program:

“1. To oppose any aggression in that area.

“2. To take effective measures to insure that there be no arms imbalance in the Middle East.

“3. To intensify United States efforts to ensure that the Suez Canal is open to the shipping of all nations without discrimination.

“4. To emphasize to the Arab nations that the United States will not tolerate discrimination against American firms engaged in business with Israel, as a by-product of their policy of economic boycott and blockade against Israel; and

“5. To take effective measures to insure that no ration receiving American economic aid will engage in boycott, blockade or other forms of economic warfare against other nations also receiving United States aid, or against American citizens on ground of their religion.”

Mrs. Herman Shulman, former national president of Hadassah and now national chairman of Hadassah’s Zionist affairs committee, told the convention: “In the last few years there has been much self-criticism within the Zionist movement. There has been an awareness that changes are needed. Some have already been introduced–more are bound to come. I speak now not only of structural framework, but also from the point of view of program and content.”