Dayan Warns Lebanon to Restrain Terrorists on Its Territory or ‘we Will Do the Job’

Defense Minister Moshe Dayan warned the Lebanese government last night that if it does not consider itself obligated to restrain terrorists on its territory. “We will do the Job.” Gen. Dayan issued his warning during a visit to Avivim, the Upper Galilee settlement that was the home of eight Israeli school children slain in a terrorist bus ambush near the Lebanese border Friday. “The government of Israel considers it its duty to ensure the safety of its inhabitants,” Gen. Dayan said. He went from home to home of the bereaved families in Avivim and met with representatives of neighboring settlements. He promised that the Israel Army would do all in its power to protect travel, work and living in the border region. But he told the settlers to “take a deep breath” because not all problems could be solved overnight. He told one mother, “You shall bring your children up and we shall do everything possible to protect their lives.” The nature of the new defense measures was not disclosed. Some sources said Israel’s strategy would be to force the terrorists to move their bases much further than they are now behind the Lebanese border. This would increase the distance they would have to traverse in order to attack Israeli border settlements or set up ambushes. In this connection one observer recalled an Israeli threat to create a six-mile wide no-man’s-land inside the Lebanese border for its entire length. Such a plan would necessarily entail Israeli occupation of the area.