Maj. Gen. E.L.M. Burns, Chief of Staff of the United Nations Truce Supervision Organization, left here by air today for New York where he will attend a meeting of the UN Security Council Thursday to report on the Gaza situation.
Prior to leaving, Gen. Burns declared that the Gaza incident must not be permitted to undermine future relations between Israel and Egypt. He declared that he would report to the Security Council all he knows about the situation preceding the incident–in which 38 Egyptians and eight Israelis were killed and 45 other Israelis and Arabs were wounded–as well as what he knows about the incident itself.
This was a major point raised by Israel at the meeting last Friday of the special Israel-Egyptian appeals committee, headed by Gen. Burns, which turned down Israel’s appeal against the Mixed Armistice Commission decision of last Sunday condemning Israel for the February 28th battle in the Gaza area. At the same time Gen. Burns agreed with Israel to change the wording to eliminate from the MAC decision such phrases as “brutal murder” and “huge” quantities of explosives used in the battle.
Meanwhile, an Israel patrol car was mined near the Egyptian border yesterday, according to an announcement by an Israel Army spokesman. There were no casualties, the spokesman said.
The Israel-Jordan MAC condemned Jordan this week-end for firing on an Israel patrol March 5 which had discovered Jordanian shepherds and sheep inside Israel territory. The same MAC session also censured Israel because the patrol replied in kind when it was fired upon.
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