Israel-born U.S. Soldier Killed in Vietnam Expected to Receive U.S. Citizenship

The House of Representatives has passed a bill conferring citizenship posthumously upon Specialist 4 Aaron Tawil, & native of Israel who was killed in action in Vietnam on November 17,1968 while serving with the 198th Infantry Brigade. The bill, which was sponsored by Rep. Bertram L. Podell of New York, now goes to the Senate for approval. His widow, Mrs. Alice Tawil, both parents, two sisters and four brothers survive. One brother is currently serving with the U.S. Army in Germany. Tawil was awarded the Bronze Star Medal for meritorious service along with Combat Infantry Badge, National Defense Service Medal, the Viet Nam Service Medal by the U.S. Army and the Vietnamese Campaign Medal by the Government of the Republic of Viet Nam.

Uri Avneri, of the Haolam Hazeh faction, was removed bodily from the Knesset chamber yesterday when he refused to obey an order by the Speaker to be silent. Mr. Avneri was loudly denouncing disciplinary measures taken by a Knesset committee against his Haolam Hazeh partner, Shalom Cohen. When he refused to desist, a half dozen Knesset ushers lifted him from his seat and carried him through the door. Mr. Cohen was banned from five consecutive Knesset sessions for having torn up his identity card in the chamber. His gesture was in protest against a government ruling which equates Jewish nationality with Jewish religion.

Haolam Hazeh, an opposition faction which won only two Knesset seats in last October’s election, filed a motion of no confidence against the Government over the proposed legislation. It was defeated Tuesday 73-five. At that Juncture, Mr. Cohen made an impassioned speech against official prying into an individual’s nationality and religion and tore his identity card. The Knesset took steps to make certain there was no photographic record of the incident concerned that it might be exploited by other Israelis opposed to the Government’s ruling on Jewish identity.