Syria has warned the major powers that if Israel proceeded with plans for diversion of Jordan River waters, this would be a threat to peace and security, it was reported here today from Beirut.
Syrian Premier Maarouf Dawalibi received the envoys of Britain, the United States, Rumania and Russia, the only Security Council member states represented diplomatically in Damascus to hand them a memorandum which asserted that Israel was continuing construction work to pump Jordan River waters from the Sea of Galilee into channels leading to the Negev.
The memorandum, as published later in a Foreign Ministry statement, recalled that Syria had resisted similar efforts by Israel in 1953 and would do so again. At that time, Syrian gunners repeatedly fired on Israeli workers.
The memorandum said that the Israel-Syrian armistice agreement provided that neither party should achieve any gains by unilateral action. The memorandum argued that successful diversion of the Jordan River would enable Israel to absorb a few million people “thus causing a new threat to the Arab world.”
Syria also contended that Israel could not, under international law, change riparian states rights by unilateral action and that the project would increase the salt content of the Sea of Galilee “thus harming Arab lands.” The memorandum added that “the plan was no less dangerous to the Arabs than the creation of Israel.
Premier Dawalibi told newsmen that Syria had other measures in mind to “face the situation” but declined to elaborate.
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.
