Israelis seem to have spared no expense to make U.S. Secretary of State George Shultz’s four-day stay here comfortable.
His huge entourage has been allotted the top four floors of the posh Jerusalem Hilton Hotel. Shultz and his wife Helena will occupy the Royal Suite on the 20th floor, which offers such amenities as a private sauna and luxurious bathrooms.
There will be corsage of orchids for Helena and a masseuse for the secretary of state. The Hilton has flown in a master chef from West Germany to prepare fish to the Shultzes’ taste.
Hotel maintenance workers spent five days cleaning and repairing the hotel’s indoor pool. It was filled with fresh water Wednesday and heated to 77 F, the temperature Shultz prefers when he goes swimming.
The tennis court, however, is covered by light snow, which may prevent the secretary from enjoying his favorite game.
Shultz and his party were greeted in the Hilton lobby Thursday by a huge white dove with an olive branch in its beak, suspended from the ceiling. The peace symbol is made of wood and aluminum and has a four-yard wingspan.
About 100 Jerusalem police officers will be directly involved in security for Shultz and his party. The presence of many U.S. secret service and Israeli plainclothes security personnel can also be assumed.
More than 1,500 police officers, recruited from all parts of the country, will be deployed in East Jerusalem and adjacent Arab villages during Shultz’s visit to make sure there are no disturbances.
The police have granted permits to various groups of different political persuasions to demonstrate either in favor of Premier Yitzhak Shamir’s hard-line policies or the more moderate position of Foreign Minister Shimon Peres.
The demonstrators will be kept at a considerable distance from Shultz’s hotel as well as the routes he will travel to and from his meetings with Israeli leaders.
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The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
