A plan for an emergency United Nations regime for Palestine, based on discussions within the 12-member Political Committee sub-committee during the past week, will be presented tomorrow to the sub-unit. The proposal will be presented by Finn Mose of Norway, rapporteur to the sub-committee, who has been preparing the draft since yesterday.
With time running short–the Palestine Mandate expires within six days–it is nevertheless not expected that the members of the sub-committee will reach an agreement on this plan tomorrow. U.N. circles today predicted that it will require several days for the sub-unit to reach accord and submit the plan to its parent body. In addition, they pointed out, more precious time will be consumed before the Political Committee completes its debate and submits the matter to the General Assembly for a vote.
Negotiations continued through the week-end on a “neutral mayor” for Jerusalem, acceptable to both the Jews and Arabs. The names of several Americans were mentioned in connection with the post, including Clarence C. Pickett, executive secretary of the American Friends Service, and A.L. Miller, executive secretary of the Y.M.C.A, in Jerusalem. However, a final solution has not yet been reached.
Meanwhile, Moshe Shertok was expected to fly to Palestine this week-end to report to the Jewish Agency executive on the latest developments at the U.S. It was reported from Tel Aviv that among the natters Shertok would discuss with the executive was a “virtual ultimatum” from the United States Government against proclaiming the Jewish Stats May 16. The report stated-bed that the U.S. has threatened to invoke “sanctions” against the Jews if a state is proclaimed. However the Jewish Telegraphic Agency was informed by Gordon P. Merriam, chief of the State Department’s Near East Division, that no such ultimatum was ever delivered.
“The American Government,” he said, “has been making persistent and persuasive efforts to obtain agreement from all sides on the Palestine question, presumably including the question of the proclamation of a new Jewish state on May 16, but there has been nothing whatsoever in the nature of an ultimatum issued to any of the parties in the Palestine dispute. We just have not been talking that way,” he added.
PARTITION CANNOT BE VOIDED EXCEPT BY FORCE, LISICKY WARNS
At the sub-committee’s discussions this week-end, Dr, Karel Lisicky, chairman of the U.N. Palestine Commission, warned that partition cannot now be undone without the was of force. He also advised against trying to regulate Jewish immigration unless member states were prepared to supply the means of enforcement.
The #### bands-off policy should apply, Lisicky said, to land purcahse and the ####tation. He suggested that whatever U.N. agency the Assembly may create #### ##### ###. Itself to regulating those matters which it would be able to control ###### ##### indicated qualified acceptance of the British proposal that, #s chairman of the Palestine Commission, he should serve on the temporary U.N. authority for Palestine.He served notice, however, that “I am not a rubber-stamping puppet.”He advised the sub-committee not to interfere with Jewish arms shipments. He doubted if the Jews, in their present situation, would ever accept such a ban proposed by Alexandre Parodi of France reminding the members that ships were standing by in Mediterranean ports waiting for the signal to rush arms and ammunition to Palestine.
John Fletcher-Cooke, British representative, declared that policing would be. the U.N.’s major problem in Palestine. He listed four other fields in which, he said, the mandatory had not been able to devolve responsibility to local authorities. These are posts and telegraphs, posts and railroads, customs and excise, and airports.
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.
