The General Assembly’s Special Political Committee approved today a resolution extending the life of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Arab refugees until June 30, 1960. The UN, in the face of expressed displeasure of the Arab bloc, virtually throws the Arab refugee problem into semi-permanent status.
The vote on the resolution was 41 in favor, none against and eight abstentions–Israel, Iraq, Burma and the five members of the Soviet Bloc. The resolution fixes the UNRWA budget for the next fiscal year at $61, 300,000 for relief and rehabilitation. The agency is also authorized to draw upon a special $200,000,000 rehabilitation fund for work projects that could be of aid to the Arab refugees.
Michael S. Comay, Israel delegate, explained his delegation’s abstention on the grounds that certain portions of the draft resolution dealing with UNRWA did not emphasize sufficiently Israel’s insistence that repatriation of the Arabs to their old homes in Israel territory is no longer feasible.
The Iraqi delegate said he abstained from voting because the resolution does not sufficiently recognize the rights of the Arab refugees to return to Israel territory. Also because the relief ordered for the refugees is, in his opinion, inadequate.
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