Representatives of about 40 parliaments in countries around the world are expected to attend the dedication here, on August 30, of the new building of the Knesset, Israel’s Parliament, the parliamentary committee in charge of the forthcoming ceremonies announced today. Among the guests, it is expected that about 30 of the official representatives will be the presiding officers or speakers of the respective parliaments.
Certain, thus far, of participation in the ceremonies are representatives of the United States, Britain, France, Holland, Belgium, Luxembourg and the Scandinavian countries. The ceremonies are to be highlighted by the participation of President Zalman Shazar, Prime Minister Levi Eshkol, Jerusalem’s Mayor Theodore Kollek, Chief Rabbis Yitzhak Nissim and Isser Yehuda Unterman, and members of the Knesset presidium.
The committee in charge of the dedication decided today that no foreign representatives are to sit on the dais during the ceremonies, and no foreign flags will be flown over the new Knesset building. That decision is believed to have been taken so that the West German flag or the representative from Bonn would not play a prominent role in the proceedings. The West German Parliament is expected to be represented by Dr. Eugen Gerstenmaier, president of the Bundestag.
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