Syria Repeats Charge Of U.S. Plot

Press, Volume XCVI, Issue 28362, 22 August 1957, Page 13

Syria Repeats Charge Of U.S. Plot

®ec. 9 p.m.) DAMASCUS, August 20 Syria’s new army chief of staff charged tonight that the United States had planned to send ‘‘Made in America” gangsters to assassinate him and other senior officers in a plot to overthrow the Syrian Government: The officer, Major-General Afif el Bizri. who is said to be a Communist, took over the chief army post last week in a military reshuffle that saw a dozen ranking officers relieved of their posts. He said American officials had planned to murder ‘‘every honest man in this country” in order to obtain their political ends.

‘‘Their first target was to kill staff officers opposing their policies and striving for independence.” General Bizri charged in his first press conference. American plotters planned to “make my children orphans ... to send their gangsters into our homes and kill us.” he said.

When an American correspondent asked where the “gangsters’ were being trained. General Bizri said: ‘‘You had better go to Jordan and Lebanon and ask there who is financing them.” < Questioned about reports from

outside the country that the Army had taken control of the government itself, General Bizra replied, ‘‘Go and ask our Foreign Minister. No-one could force him to do something he didn’t want to do. He is happy in his work.” ‘‘Syrians do not need anyone to teach us how to love our country,” he said. ‘‘lf you can explain communism as every man who loves his .country, I am a Communist,;’ General Bizri declared. ‘‘lf people want to be Communist or Fascist, nobody can interfere in these matters. I don’t sacrifice the interest of my country for any other nation.” Asked whether he included the Soviet Union, he replied: ‘‘We will not sacrifice z our country for any people.” General Bizri brushed aside questions about reported Soviet arms shipments to Syria with the statement, ‘‘This is our affair and our affair only.” Syria would buy arms from the United States if it preferred to. “We are buying arms with our own money, and will accept none without paying,” he said. Asked about Soviet technicians in Syria, he said: ‘‘lf they are here it is for the delivery of arms to our people and not to tell us what to do.” 5