Asserting that it was unrealistic to overlook political factors in discussing development, an Arab League spokesman told the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) yesterday that Israeli “aggression” compels the Arab states to divert a great percentage of their resources to defense and thwarts the just peace in the Middle East essential for economic development.
The speaker, Yusif el-Bandak, claimed that the closure of the Suez Canal was a direct result of the dangerous tension in the Middle East. He welcomed the participation of China in the Conference and observed that China has never recognized as legal the aggression committed against Palestine. Bandak said seven Arab member states of the Arab League have banded together for the creation of an Arab common market and other steps for industrial and agricultural development.
While the Arab spokesman at UNCTAD was accusing Israel, the Jewish State was warmly praised by the mass circulation newspaper “3A De La Hora.” The paper Monday published two pages of photographs and text devoted to Israel, singling out that country as an example for the “Third World” of developing nations. An article signed by the editor, Nora Ferrada, said the secret of Israel’s success was that in Israel all worked for the common good.
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.
