Israel Accused Of Attack Plot

Press, Volume CVI, Issue 31349, 20 April 1967, Page 15

Israel Accused Of Attack Plot

(N.Z. Prof Association— Copyright)

BEIRUT, April 19. The Syrian Prime Minister, Mr Youssef Zayyen, yesterday accused Israel of plotting to attack “at any hour” as the Egyptian Prime Minister, Mr Mohammed Sidqi Solaiman, flew into Damascus, the Syrian capital, to tighten the mutual defence pact between the two Arab nations.

President Nasser of Egypt sent his personal representative, Hassan Sabry ei-Kholi, with Mr Solaiman for the four days of talks with the Syrian officials. Mr Zayyen marked the arrival of President Nasser’s two envoys by telling a student congress in Damascus that the Syrian Government expected an attack from Israel “at any hour.”

“We are ready for it,” he added, according to a Radio Damascus broadcast. Mr Solaiman said he would discusss “all problems” concerning the Arab world with the leaders of Syria, once linked in union with Egypt.

Informed sources said that one of the main topics will be to implement the Egypt-Syrian defence agreement in the event of an Israeli attack. Jordan, which has a feud with Syria and Egypt, claimed that Cairo ignored its defence pact commitments by failing to send aircraft to help Syria against attack by Israeli jet planes two weeks ago. The Jordanian Government made similar charges against the Arab League after the extensive Israeli raid on its border villages last November.

The Israeli-Syrian clash on April 7, involved artillery and armoured vehicles in addition to fighter aircraft