Israel challenged the right of the Soviet Union today to question Israeli treatment of Arabs in Jerusalem when it was guilty of the mistreatment of Jews in the Soviet Union. The challenge was made by Ambassador Yosef Tekoah arising on a point of order after Ambassador Yakov Malik of the Soviet Union and Ambassador Agha Shahi of Pakistan had made extensive attacks on Israel, including its alleged mistreatment of the Arab population in Jerusalem.
Ambassador Malik protested against Mr. Tekoah’s description of the treatment of Soviet Jewry and Lord Caradon of Britain, president of the Council, instructed Mr. Tekoah to keep to the issue. Mr. Tekoah replied that he wanted to draw “a legitimate comparison” between the situation of the Arabs in Jerusalem and the Jews in Moscow and said he wanted to ask a simple question: “How could the Council allow the Soviet representative to speak about the continuation of Arab cultural, religious and public life in Jerusalem when the Jewish citizens of the Soviet Union were deprived of these rights?”
The Israeli spokesman told the Council that “the Moslems in Jerusalem enjoy fully freedom of religion, freedom to operate their own institutions, the use of Arab clubs and the Arab schools in Jerusalem are operating normally. When the Soviet government will grant equal rights to its Jewish citizens, we will consider the Soviet Union justified in speaking about Arab rights in Jerusalem.” The Council adjourned until Tuesday afternoon when the Jordanian representative is scheduled to speak again.
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