Tel Aviv Siege Called Unnecessary; Four-day Search by 20,000 Troops Netted 40 Suspects

With military operations in Tel Aviv ended and the siege of the city lifted, Jewish circles here are questioning the results of the four-day occupation by more than a full division of infantry troops supported by tanks, armored cars and heavy machine gun carriers.

They point out that these 20,000 soldiers carried out a war-time operation against 200,000 civilian residents of Tel Aviv. At the end of the four days all that had been found were some old Haganah arms caches and a small quantity of arms belonging to the Irgun Zvai Leumi hidden in the air raid shelter of a synagogue which was accessible to anybody.

In addition, about 1,500 people were detained, but only about 40 suspected terrorists were arrested, including the sister of Abraham Stern, the late leader of the Stern Group, who had nothing to do with the activities of his organization.

These same circles point out that the cost of this large-scale operation was unnecessarily high in relation to the results obtained. Was it necessary, they asked, to cut off so large a city for four days in order to arrest 40 people a task which could have been accomplished by 50 ordinary policemen.

CHARGE CHIEF REASON FOR RAIDS WAS TO PUNISH JEWS

These circles further maintain that the chief reason for the Tel Aviv siege was to punish the Jews of Tel Aviv and the Jewish community of the entire country. Palestine, they stress, with 35 percent of its budget devoted to the maintenance of “security forces” now has 15,000 uniformed policemen and thousands of plain clothesmen–a much larger police force than many larger states–but this entire force is apparently unable to find “political gangsters,” Whenever trouble breaks out this huge police force calls upon the services of the tens of thousands of British troops.

Major General A.J.H. Cassel, commander of the troops in Tel Aviv, told correspondents today that as the population of the city had not come to the assistance of the authorities there was no other way in which suspected terrorists and arms caches could have been found than by the methods adopted. Gen. Cassel said the inhabitants had taken the search very well, although no information had been volunteered. It is estimated that 30,000 people had been screened daily.

Meanwhile, it was reported today that two explosions occurred north of Tel Aviv as the first contingents of the British Sixth Airborne Division began pulling out of the city.

As the curfew was lifted, the many services which had been disrupted during the four-day occupation were being resumed, Numerous food trucks entered the city which had been cut off from the rest of the country and whose food stocks were extremely low.

A dangerous situation was narrowly averted when neighboring Jewish communities brought food in yesterday during the two-hour period when the curfew was lifted. It was estimated that well over $1,000,000 was lost in wages and business during the four-day nearly completes suspension of activity.

Despite the apparent lack of success in apprehending terrorist leaders responsible for the King David Hotel bombing in Tel Aviv, the authorities for the second time since the blast are conducting searches in the Jewish sections of Jerusalem. Both the working class district and the middle class residential section, Rehavia, were combed today by strong detachments of troops and police supported by large mobile radio units. All passersby were halted and forced to produce identification.