Hearings before the International Court of Justice at The Hague on Israels claim against Bulgaria for shooting down an El Al plane and killing 58 passengers, will start on March 16. it was reported today by U.S. Government sources.
The United States has watched the issue with interest because a number of American citizens were among the 58 persons killed. The first hearing on the case will deal with preliminary Bulgarian objections to the Jurisdiction of the world court.
Proceedings were instituted by Israel Government against Bulgaria in October, 1957. Israel told the world court that damages equivalent to $7,462, 803 had been claimed. Israel reserved the legal right to claim moral and material reparation at a later stage in the case.
The State Department is on record as having denounced Bulgaria and urged its government to settle claims arising from the incident. Cases filed by the United States and United Kingdom against Bulgaria are pending at the world court.
The United States filed a brief and evidence on behalf of six American citizens who left American next-of-kin. America also sought through its action to protect freedom of the air. The United States position is that even if a plane accidentally strays from its flight plan over a national boundary there is no justification for shooting it down without warning and killing its passengers.
Bulgaria at first promised to make a financial settlement. But this was before Bulgaria gained admission to the United Nations. Once the Communist state was admitted to the United Nations, it arbitrarily refused to admit responsibility, holding that El Al was entirely to blame.
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