The United Nations Security Council will meet in urgent session tomorrow morning to take up Israel’s complaint against the latest Egyptian attacks in the Gaza area which resulted in the killing of two and the wounding of 16 Israelis.
UN Secretary General Dag Hammarskjold, at a press conference here today said that there is adequate United Nations machinery on hand in the Palestine area for containment of hostilities between Israel and its Arab neighbors. Mr. Hammarskjold’s expression of confidence in the UN machinery came in reply to a question as to whether he would favor establishment of a special United Nations committee composed of ex-presidents of the General Assembly for a fresh review of the entire Middle East situation.
Establishment of such a committee, Mr. Hammarskjold said, would be a “departure from normal procedures.” Taking such steps might be wise at some other time, but “certainly not now.” He expressed full support of the four-point border-policing plan proposed by Maj. Gen. E.L.M. Burns, Chief of Staff of the UN Truce Supervision Organization in Palestine. Such a program, the Secretary General said, is “realistic and solid, and has the Secretariat’s full support.”
The Secretary General felt that “it is highly regrettable that the Security Council resolutions adopted only last week on the Palestine question were not followed by more peaceful conditions.” He felt, however, that the United Nations will know more precisely about what has happened on the Israel-Egyptian border after tomorrow’s Council meeting.
Mr. Hammarskjold confirmed that he had conferred very recently with Eric Johnston, President Eisenhower’s personal envoy to the Near East, about the American plan for development of the power and water resources of the Jordan River Valley. The Secretary General said that Mr. Johnston had indicated genuine hope for the possibility of bringing Israel and the Arab states together for acceptance of a Jordan River Valley plan. However, Mr. Hammarskjold said, Mr. Johnston did not indicate a time table for attainment of his objective.
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