“The policy of the Transjordan Government is to try to reach peace with Israel, not to reopen hostilities,” Muhamed el Amari Bey, Transjordan member of the mixed Israel-Transjordan armistice commission, declared today. His statement was made after the Israel delegation laid before the body a complaint concerning the minder of two Jewish settlers and the wounding of a third by Arab bandits who escaped into Transjordan-held territory this week-end.
After insisting that his statement be entered in the record, Amari Bey said that his government and the Arab Legion regretted the attack and would attempt to avoid repetition of such incidents. He pledged an investigation and punishment of the criminals if they are caught. In addition he said he would announce in a week measures which will be taken to halt violations of the armistice lines. The Israel Government demanded extradition of the murderers when they were apprehended.
Engineers of the Palestine Electric Corporation in Israel made their first visit to Transjordan several days ago, it was revealed today by the Tel Aviv Newspaper Yedioth Achronoth. The paper said a group of four Jewish engineers inspected the company’s plant at Naharayim, on the Transjordan side of the Jordan River and several miles south of Lake Tiberias.
The plant at Naharayim was captured 20 months ago by Jordan troops. The engineers’ visit took place on Saturday after special permission was granted by the Amman authorities, but the Israelis declined to disclose the results of their inspection, nor to make any comment at all on their trip.
Yedioth Achronoth recalled that the disposition of the Maharayim plant was included among the topics discussed during the Israel-Transjordan negotiations. Unconfirmed reports said that King Abdullah had agreed to return the plant to Jewish control in exchange for ten years of free electric service for Transjordan.
(The Transjordan radio station in Amman will launch a series of Hebrew broadcasts, according to a dispatch from Jorusalem received today by the London News-Chronicle. The report says the Hebrew programs are the first move towards Transjordan’s recognition of the Jewish state.)
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