U.N. Sub-committee on Partition Unable to Reach Agreement on Palestine Boundaries

Unable to reach agreement on the question of boundaries of the proposed Jewish and Arab states in Palestine, the U.N. sub-committee on partition today decided to discuss and settle first the non-controversial recommendations of the UNSCOP majority report, postponing the discussion on boundaries until tomorrow afternoon.

Both the American and Soviet delegates opposed proposals by Poland and Guatemala to set up a separate sub-group to thrash out the boundary issue. The Soviet representative insisted that the matter should be considered by all members of the sub-committee, while the American opposed naming a single member of the body to meet with representatives of the Jewish Agency and members of UNSCOP to revise the frontiers orginally suggested by UNSCOP.

The discussion on boundaries occupied the sub-committee’s entire morning session and a part of the afternoon session, during which Moshe Shertok resumed his plea for the inclusion of Western Galilee and the new Jewish section of Jerusalem in the Jewish state. The question of the disposition of Jaffa was also touched upon during the discussion.

UNSCOP MEMBERS DEFEND INCLUSION OF JERUSALEM IN INTERNATIONAL ZONE

Justice Emil Sandstroem of Sweden, who headed UNSCOP, and Paul Mohn, Swedish alternate on UNSCOP, gave their reasons for recommeding that all Jerusalem should be an international area. The sub-committee questioned British observer J.H. Martin on Jewish demands for Western Galilee and frontier modifications. While his answeres were concommittal and he was not inclined to give advice or recommendations, it is understood that the underlying assumption of his remarks was an implicit acceptance of the partition idea.

The American stand on the three fundamental questions–termination of the mandate, transitional authority and U.N. supervision–is not expected to be finally formulated before tomorrow, according to a U.S. spokesman. He said that there is no besis for a press report that the U.S. and Russia see eye to eye on referring implementation of partition to the Security Council.

It is thought likely that the sub-committee will secure an extension of time within which to submit its report to the Ad Hoc Committee since tomorrow is the present deadline. At this point there is little if any likelihood that either the sub-committee on partition or that on Arab proposals will have completed its work by then.

COLOMBIAN RESIGNS CHAIRMANSHIP OF SUB-COMMITTEE ON ARAB PROPOSALS

Colombian delegate Dr. A. Gonzalez Fernandez, chairman of the nine-member subcommittee to coordinate Arab proposals and the only non-Moslem member of the group, today announced his resignation. The Pakistan delegate, Sir Zafrullah Khan, was named chairman to succeed him. The new chairman later attended a session of the sub-com?tte?

It is understood that in advocating the inclusion of Western Galilee in the Jewish state Shertok offered a number of reasons why the area was needed by the Jews, cluding its value to the agricultural economy of the new nation and its use within ## strategic defensive layout of the country. He said that at least 50 percent of ##lilee is considered uncultivatable with the soil decreasing in quality toward the ##thern part of the country and that if the Jews were given the area they would make eat efforts to improve it. In addition, Shertok asserted, this area would be useful ? a reservoir section for irrigation projects in the northern areas of the state. ?ally, it would serve as a base along the frontier to link the eastern and western ?its of the country.