U.N. Security Council Rejects Morocco’s Resolution Against Israel

The United States and Britain introduced into the Security Council here today a resolution arising from the Syrian-Israeli exchanges of fire on Israel’s northern frontier last month. The resolution calls upon both parties to cooperate fully with the chairman of the Israel-Syrian Mixed Armistice Commission and to cooperate also in a resurvey of the border path where the Syrians had fired at an Israeli patrol.

A draft resolution introduced several weeks ago by Morocco, the only Arab member of the Council, which would have criticized Israel sharply and would have laid all the blame for the November 13 flare-up on Israel, was rejected at today’s meeting by the overwhelming vote of eight to three. Only the Soviet Union and Czechoslovakia joined Morocco in supporting the pro-Arab draft. All eight other members of the 11-member Council abstained.

Mcrocco’s Dey Culd Sidi Baba then tried to achieve his goal by introducing amendments to the Western resolution which would have supported the Syrian claim that Israel was guilty of aggression, but this month’s president of the Council, Fernando Ortiz Sanz of Bolivia adjourned the meeting without setting a date for the next session.

In explaining the Western resolution, Ambassador Charles W. Yost of the United States told the Council that the draft which he was cosponsoring is concerned with the future and applies “to prevention of a repetition of such a tragic incident as had occurred on Nov. 13. The American-British resolution would have the Council strictly avoid blaming either Syria or Israel for the latest clash.

The American-British resolution deplored “the renewal of military action” on the Syrian-Israel border, called upon both parties to participate fully in the meetings of the Mixed Armistice Commission and requested the UN Secretary General to inform the Council by March 31 “of the progress that has been made toward implementing these suggestions.”