Likud Defeated in Bid to Censure Goldmann for Efforts to Arrange Meeting Between Sadat, Wjc Leaders

The Israeli Executive of the World Jewish Congress adopted a resolution today welcoming political steps by WJC leaders that would promote Israeli-Arab peace provided that these efforts are coordinated with the Israeli government. The resolution represented a defeat for the Likud members of the Executive who had demanded that it censure WJC president Dr. Nahum Goldmann for his recent efforts to arrange a meeting between WJC leaders and President Anwar Sadat of Egypt.

Dr. Joseph Shofmann, of Likud, urged the Executive to instruct Goldmann and Philip Klutznick, chairman of the Governing Board of the WJC and a former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, to “discontinue the shameful contacts with the Egyptian Ambassador to Washington” Ashraf Ghorbal. Shofmann claimed that Premier Yitzhak Rabin had disavowed any knowledge of such contacts and that they were totally denied by Egyptian officials.

But Goldmann told the Executive today that he had consulted Rabin about the contacts and that the Premier welcomed the idea and in fact discussed the composition of the WJC delegation. It would include Klutznick, Rabbi Alexander Schindler, chairman of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations, Lord Fisher, president of the Board of Deputies of British Jews, and Baron Guy de Rothschild of France.

Goldmann said that Rabin lacked knowledge only of technical contacts with Egyptians to agree to a date. He said the WJC delegation would go to Israel for consultations before proceeding to Egypt.

Goldmann said the delegation intended to warn the Arabs not to expand their conflict with Israel into a world-wide conflict of Arabs vs. Jews. He said it would also stress that the entire Jewish people backs Israel and that before Israel offers any concessions, the Arabs must extend recognition to the Jewish State. The WJC leader said, “I believe that for peace one has to pay, but if there is no full, overall peace, there should be no payment.” He said he expected a difficult year ahead for Israel in the political sphere. But he was optimistic that there is, for the first time, a real chance for a Middle East settlement.