Israeli Government Gets Report of Arab Efforts to Establish Contact with Israel

A spokesman for the Israeli government today denied reports that Foreign Minister Moshe Shertok referred to Arab-Jewish peace talks allegedly going on in one of the European capitals when he addressed the Zionist Actions Committee this week on Israel’s foreign policy.

“The Israeli foreign minister who has been quoted as a source for alleged Arab-Jewish peace negotiations made no such statement before the Actions Committee,” the spokesman declared. He added that Shertok merely said that reports of efforts on the part of Arab circles to establish contact with Israel have reached the Israeli Government.

Addressing a meeting of right-wing political leaders in Tel Aviv, Menachem Beigin, who is now chairman of the provisional committee of the Freedom Movement Organization, said: “Our movement opposes any agreement with King Abdullah of Transjordan which would bring the British back to the eastern Mediterranean.We insist on the liberation of the whole of Palestine. This aim can be achieved only with the friendship of France in the west and with Russia’s friendship in the east.”

In a broadcast today, the Irgun alleges that it discovered a secret memorandum submitted by two senior officers of the Transjordan Arab Legion to the British Government in London prior to the arrival there of Brigadier John B. Glubb, commander of the Legion. The memorandum urged the British Government to open negotiations with Turkey for the shipment of British arms to Syria, Lebanon and Transjordan through Turkish territory, the broadcast stated.

The two officers, the Irgun radio added, received a verbal reply from the British authorities which emphasized that “the matter is most difficult” because the American Government intervened with Britain after learning of British intentions to ship arms. The U.S. Government pointed out to Britain that all parties involved in the Palestine war must abide by the truce regulations, the Irgun broadcast reported.