Israelis hand over positions

Press, Volume CXIV, Issue 33446, 30 January 1974, Page 17

Israelis hand over positions

(N.Z.P.A.-Reuter—Copyright)

TEL AVIV, January 29.

Israel, with its southern foothold on the west bank of the Suez Canal now abandoned to Egyptian troops, will wait today for Egypt to start thinning out its forces east of the waterway.

Israel moved first, in accordance with the agreement on disengagement of forces, to allow Egyptian troops moving westwards to use the Suez-Cairo highway.

All positions in the “bulge” Israel held south of the highway, including the suburbs of Port Suez, the small harbour of Adabiya and the strategic mountain range of Jebel Ataka, were aban-

doned in what was described as “a leisurely withdrawal” yesterday. Many of the troops were singing happily as they handed over their positions to United Nations troops, be-

fore Egyptian forces moved in. The redeployment went off without a hitch and in accordance with the arrangements agreed on by the two parties. Under the terms of the accord there was a six-hour “buffer period” before the Egyptians moved into the abandoned positions. Israel is not expected to abandon any further positions today but will continue its withdrawal from other parts of the salient on the west bank, a process scheduled to end by February 21. But the withdrawal may be speeded up to be completed before the agreed deadline. On the east bank of the canal Israel handed over its first outpost to a Panamanian unit of the United Nations Emergency Force (U.N.E.F.), at a point south of the beleaguered Egyptian Third Army, Israel Radio reported last night. The disengagement agreement initiated by the United States Secretary of State (Dr Henry Kissinger) has been hailed by some Israeli leaders as the first step towards genuine peace. But the Right-wing opposition has called it a “Munich type" surrender.

The Israeli Foreign Minister (Mr Abba Eban) said last night that the next few weeks would be crucial for the Middle East in testing whether the Arabs really wanted peace. The agreement calls for the redrawing of the military map east of the Suez Canal, where a U.N.E.F. buffer zone will be flanked by two strips — Egyptian and Israel — in w’hich only limited forces and weapons are allowed. The moves involve the reduction of the present Egyptian force east of the canal, estimated at 70,000 troops, to some 7000 with a similar reduction in armour from about 700 to 30, according to the Israeli Defence Minister (General Moshe Dayan).