Israel complained to the United Nations Security Council last night against “recent armed attacks by Syrian forces upon Israel’s citizens and civilian activities in the vicinity of the Israel-Syrian border.” These attacks, according to the complaint, “constitute most flagrant violations of the Israel-Syria General Armistice Agreement,” and “the deteriorating border situation is a serious threat to international peace and security.”
Israel’s permanent representative here, Ambassador Michael Comay, sent the letter of complaint to the president of the Security Council after an earlier conference with Secretary-General U Thant and Dr. Ralph J. Bunche, Undersecretary for Special Political Affairs. Mr. Comay was accompanied at that conference by Lt. Col. Yaacov Monbaz, a member of Israel’s permanent mission here. The Ambassador requested that the United Nations use its full weight and influence to halt further aggression by Syria.
Mr. Comay’s letter did not ask for a meeting of the Security Council but only that the contents be circulated to all members of the Council. According to the letter, Syria has been making sporadic attacks against Israel along its border since it broke “a long period of calm along this border” on June 9. In his letter and attached appendix, Mr. Comay listed 29 cases of shooting attacks from Syrian positions at Israel’s citizens and civilian activities in the border area in the four-week period from June 9 to July 6; In each case, he informed the Council, Israel’s complaints were submitted to the Syrian-Israel Mixed Armistice Commission and, except during attacks on July 2 and July 6, “no fire was returned from the Israel side of the border.”
During the various attacks, Israel suffered four casualties; One of the wounded, according to Mr. Comay, is still in a critical condition. Syrians, he stated, used rifles, tanks, 82-mm Soviet-type, recoilless guns, and various other weapons, as well as incendiary bullets which set fire to crops and other Israeli possessions “causing extensive damage.” One of the attacks, Mr. Comay reported, on July 2, lasted over seven hours.
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