Motions proposed by the extreme rightist Herut party and the Communists against the remarks made by Premier David Ben Gurion rejecting the mediation offer by British Prime Minister Sir Anthony Eden, were defeated by the Knesset here today. The Herut motion, which called for a solution to the problem by the occupation by Israel of the entire territory of what was termed “historic Eretz Israel” was voted down by 54 to 13. The Communist motion, that the matter should be referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs, was defeated by a vote of 25 to 13, with 23 abstentions.
Mr. Ben Gurion, in his address to the Knesset yesterday, rejected the mediation proposal on the basis which Sir Anthony had proposed–a “compromise” on boundaries. The Premier said that proposal to truncate Israel’s territory had “no legal, moral or logical basis.” He added that such proposals, far from encouraging peace, would only bolster Arab intransigeance and aggressive intentions. He was especially critical of what he termed the “fantastic suggestion” that Arab aggression should be rewarded by the cession of Israel territory. The Premier made it clear, however, that his offer to meet for peace talks with Arab leaders still stood.
JTA has documented Jewish history in real-time for over a century. Keep our journalism strong by joining us in supporting independent, award-winning reporting.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
