Mrs. Meir Denounces Syria, Egypt in Wake of 3-way Prisoner-release Arrangement

Premier Golda Meir had bitter words for Syria and Egypt today as she revealed details of the three-cornered deal by which Israel exchanged Syrian and Egyptian prisoners of war for two Israeli civilians held in Damascus since Aug. 29 and two downed Israeli fighter pilots imprisoned in Egypt. The civilians, Prof. Shlomo Samueloff, 49, of the Hebrew University-Hadassah Medical School and Sallah Muallem 44, a Tel Aviv travel agent, were passengers aboard a TWA airliner hijacked to Damascus by Arab commandos. The two pilots, Maj. Nissim Ashkenazi and Capt. Giora Romm, where seriously injured when they bailed out of their jets over the Suez Canal months ago and were held in solitary confinement in a Cairo prison hospital. The four were released Friday.

In an official statement, Mrs. Meir denounced Damascus as “the capital of international piracy” and accused the Egyptian authorities of callous and inhumane treatment of the two injured pilots who were denied visits by representatives of the International Red Cross during most of their imprisonment.

Mrs. Meir listed the international agencies that had tried in vain to secure the release of the hijacked Israeli civilians. “Any civilized country,” she said, “would have swiftly released all the passengers regardless of their nationality, as required by international law.” But Syria turned a “deaf ear” to pleas by the United States Government; TWA United Nations Secretary General U Thant; Miss Angie Brooks, president of the UN General Assembly; International Federation of Airline Pilots Associations; International Air Transport Association and various governments. She said the International Red Cross was approached when it became apparent that ordinary diplomatic means had failed.

Mrs. Meir said that at first Syria refused unconditionally to free the two Israelis. But gradually, through intermediaries, a deal was evolved involving not only Syrian but Egyptian prisoners in Israel. The premier made it clear that the idea of an exchange was distasteful to the Israel Government because it required the return of legitimately held prisoners of war for civilians whose detention was in gross violation of international law.

Eventually, the Israeli Cabinet agreed unanimously to the exchange, Mrs. Meir’s statement said, but the Syrians continued to stall. Finally the exchange was carried out in two stages. Thirteen Syrians were handed over to their government Friday through the International Red Cross at Kuneitra in the Golan Heights in return for Prof. Samueloff and Mr. Muallem. The two were flown to Athens in the same TWA jet which was hijacked more than three months ago. The plane had been severely damaged and repairs were completed only a week ago.

The exchanged Syrians included two jet pilots who landed in Israel in August 1968, apparently because of an error in navigation, and a number of captured Syrian soldiers and civilians. The two Israeli pilots were returned at Kantara in the Canal zone for one Egyptian pilot, five soldiers and 52 civilians. According to Israeli authorities, the Egyptian and Syrian civilians were active terrorists or intelligence agents.

PILOTS REPORTED IN POOR CONDITIONS, MEDICAL CARE CRITICIZED

Maj. Ashkenazi and Capt, Romm were reportedly in poor condition when ferried across the canal Friday. They were taken to a hospital where both will undergo treatment for several months. An Israeli spokesman said they suffered fractures of hands and legs and both underwent surgery at Egyptian hands. Maj. Ashkenazi underwent an operation for the seventh time only four days before his release and will have to have further orthopedic surgery. Israeli doctors who examined the pilots said their medical care in Egypt was inadequate.

Israel meanwhile published list of the Egyptians and Syrians freed. In addition to the two fighter pilots, the Syrians included five intelligence agents captured in the Golan Heights and six civilians who had infiltrated into Israel since the Six-Day War. The Egyptians included the pilot of a Sukhov bomber, Maj. Nabil Said; six soldiers who remained in Sinai after the Six-Day War and tried to enter Jordan disguised as civilians; 28 fishermen captured in the Gulf of Suez last June and September; seven saboteurs, apparently soldiers in mufti, who were captured in a boat in the Gulf of Suez while enroute to a sabotage mission; and 11 civilians captured by Israeli forces during a raid last Oct. 25 on Egyptian position on the west shore of the Gulf of Suez.

At the UN, Mr. Thant “warmly welcomed” the Israelis’ release but said he could not be certain whether his good offices had been instrumental. News of the release came just before the General Assembly’s legal committee approved a resolution urging all governments to insure that hijackers are punished.

Cuba cast the only dissenting vote in the 67-1 decision, and the Soviet bloc and Arab states abstained. The measure, sponsored by The Netherlands, called on nations to enact adequate legal frameworks against interference with aircraft, to prosecute hijackers and to cooperate with efforts of the international Civil Aviation Organization, a UN-related agency, to apply international conventions.

In New York, TWA said on Friday “Of necessity” its efforts on behalf of the two Israelis “had to be conducted in secrecy. Our dealings were further complicated by the fact that we do not serve Syria…and the U.S. does not maintain diplomatic relations with that country.”

In Washington, it was reported that Israel was absent from a list of 13 nations that will hold a special meeting Dec. 16-19 to “supplement and support international efforts” to deal with hijacking of commercial airliners. A State Department spokesman said the countries which will attend provide most of the world’s civil air service. The number of participants will be restricted “to permit full discussion in the limited time available.” The nations attending will be the U.S. Australia, Brazil, Canada, Denmark, Sweden, Norway, England, France, West Germany, Italy, Japan, and The Netherlands.