Israel today tightened its security measures against terrorist activities on the West Bank where residents were warned that aid to terrorist gangs and saboteurs will not be tolerated. One reaction to the Israeli countermeasures was a call for a general strike by the Mayor and town council of Nablus in protest against the demolition of houses belonging to terrorists.
The warning against support of terrorism was delivered in person by Defense Minister Moshe Dayan to Arab officials in the Hebron area today. The ringleaders of the sabotage gang that planted explosives in downtown Jerusalem and in the Tel Aviv bus terminal came from the Hebron region as did a spy ring which was apprehended this week along with illegal radio transmitters and weapons. Gen. Dayan told the Arab leaders that the Israeli Army would see to the wellbeing of the civilian population but warned that if the villagers involve themselves in acts of terrorism they will have to take the consequences. The increase in terrorist activities led to the re-establishment today of checkposts along the highways connecting the West Bank with Jerusalem and other parts of Israel. The measure was said to be a temporary one. But meanwhile all buses and other vehicles are checked to make sure that Arabs crossing the so-called “green line” from the West Bank into Israel proper have valid permits.
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