A top member of the Israel Embassy in Paris was reported today flying to Algeria to explain to local French authorities that the plane forced down at Bone, Algeria, with three tons of arms aboard, was en route to South America.
Even as he left, a French Foreign Ministry spokesman said that the French Governor General of Algeria, Robert La Costet, had ordered a new inquiry into the plane incident, apparently dissatisfied with the results of the first investigation. The Foreign Office spokesman refused further comment until after the end of the new study.
Meanwhile, it was reported here that French military officials in Algeria were attempting to blow up the incident in an attempt to divert the public’s attention from recent incidents in North Africa for which the military was responsible. On the other hand, the French Foreign Office is attempting to close the affair as soon as possible to avoid further embarrassment to Israel.
A Season of Big Decisions. From the Knesset campaign to American midterms, Jewish communities are weighing what comes next. Help JTA keep delivering the deeper context.
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.
