The Israeli delegation at the United Nations will place a complaint with the UN Security Council against Jordan tomorrow, it was indicated here today in Israeli diplomatic circles. The complaint will denounce Jordan violations of the armistice agreement and its refusal to attend the Israel-Jordan conference in Jerusalem called by UN Secretary General Dag Hammarskjold.
The move by Israel follows a formal request made last Thursday by Lebanon to the Security Council to accept as a “complaint for urgent consideration” the charge by Jordan that Israelis carried out an attack on the Jordan border village of Nahalin in which nine Arabs were killed.
Andrei Vishinsky, head of the Soviet delegation, who twice used the veto to cancel Security Council resolutions acceptable to Israel but opposed by the Arab countries, is president of the Security Council this month. It is not expected that he will call a meeting of the Council before the middle of this week. The Lebanese move was aimed at countering any plan of the Western Powers to request a general discussion of the Arab-Israel border situation.
British delegations circles today expressed confidence that when the Security Council takes up the Palestine question this week, the debate will not be limited to a single item but will cover the entire situation. (In London, Foreign office sources indicated today that Britain was “dismayed” at the United States’ procrastination over the Israel-Arab situation which had allowed the Lebanese “to steal a march” on the Western Powers by calling for a Security Council discussion on the Nahalin incident.)
It was learned during the week-end that while the United States was hesitating over whether the Western Powers should go ahead with a request to the Security Council for a wide debate of the whole Arab-Israel frontier problem–a move strongly opposed by the Arabs but strongly favored by Israel–it is now inclined to favor such a step, which is advocated by both Britain and France.
Meanwhile, Western diplomatic circles were reported discussing a proposal for an on-the-spot report on the Arab-Israel frontier situation by the UN Peace Observation Commission, a 14-nation General Assembly body over which the USSR has no veto. Whether or not this “watchdog” unit is asked to investigate the Israel-Arab situation or not will depend in large measure on whether the U.S. Britain and France agree to it.
Israeli sources at the UN, commenting on the Lebanese request for placement of the Nahalin incident on the agenda of the Security Council, pointed out that the recent sequence of violence was begun by constant Jordanian murders of Israelis along the frontier, culminating with the mass murder of Israelis at the Scorpion Pass. “It is therefore a shocking travesty for an Arab representative to cover this Jordanian guilt by asking the Security Council to devote its attention to one of the isolated consequences of Jordanian aggression without examining this aggression in its general terms,” he said.
Help ensure Jewish news remains accessible to all. Your donation to the Jewish Telegraphic Agency powers the trusted journalism that has connected Jewish communities worldwide for more than 100 years. With your help, JTA can continue to deliver vital news and insights. Donate today.
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.
