INTERPRETATION SOUGHT

Otago Daily Times, Issue 26791, 7 June 1948, Page 5

INTERPRETATION SOUGHT

Security Council’s Resolution

JEWISH EMIGRATION INTO PALESTINE

New Zealand Press Association—Copyright. Rec. 10 p.m. NEW YORK, June 4. Count Falke Bernadotte, the United Nations mediator in Palestine, lias notified the Security Council that the question of Jewish emigration into Palestine for the duration of the truce is alone obstructing agreement between the Jews and Arabs on the effective date-of the truce. Count Bcrnadotte< stated that difficulty had arisen concerning the interpretation of the phrases “ fighting personnel ” and “men of military age” in the Security Council resolution, of May 29. He asked if it meant that men of military age may be brought into the Jewish area of Palestine during the period of truce provided they are not mobilised or submitted to training, or whether the resolution seeks the exclusion 0? all men of military age. Count Bernadotte was informed that the council’s attitude was that A he has authority to make the interpretation and need refer to the council only if his interpretations are challenged.

Reports from London say that European Governments have started to respond to an appeal made by Count Bernadotte for observers to supervise the Palestine truce.

Company's plant, south of the Dead Sea are blazing after a heavy Arab Legion artillery bombardment, says Reuter’s Amman correspondent. It is reported that several hundred armed Jews occupy the building. The British United Press says the Jewish forces launched an attack on Old Jerusalem before dawn to-day. Arab Legion officers said Legion troops repulsed the attack with heavy losses to the Jews. Protest to Vatican The heads of the Catholic communities of Jerusalem have released the text of the telegram they sent to the Vatican protesting against Jewish activities in the Holy City. The telegram said that protests made to the three-man consular truce committee as well as to representatives of the International Red Cross had failed to yield results. The telegram was submitted for “ The Holy See’s information and consideration.” The Franciscan Friars have delivered notes to Rome to-day announcing that they intended to raise a militia of Christian volunteers to guard Palestine’s holy places, says the Rome correspondent of the New York HeraldTribune. The Franciscans said that 408 brothers of their order at present in Palestine are no longer able to guarantee the security of holy places and need between 500 and 1000 armed men of all nationalities to assist them. The Friars who announced the plan are members of the Franciscan “ Holy Land delegation.” which has been safeguarding Christian sacred places in Palestine since the thirteenth century.

The Belgian Government announced to-day that it was sending about 20 military observers to Palestine almost immediately. Sweden said she was sending five officers. A Belgian Foreign Office communique said the Government considered it an international duty to co-operate in the constitution of a corps of observers to supervise the application and respect of the truce by Arabs and Jews. Prague radio quoted a Government news agency report from Tel-Aviv that the Israeli Cabinet last night discussed the question of obtaining mutual aid and aggression treaties with Poland, Czechoslovakia and Russia. Sixty leaders, representing 24,000 Jewish refugees in Cyprus internment camps, told Sir Godfrey Collings, the British commissioner for the camps, that any attempt to prevent ablebodied male internees between the ages of 17 and 46 from leaving the camps for Palestine will “ result in the gravest consequences.” It is understood that the camp guards have been considerably strengthened. The Jews of Cairo have contributed £40.000, and the Jews of Alexandria £20,000 “as a greeting to Egypt and her army, and as an expression of loyalty to King Farouk.” Existence of Plot Denied In London a Foreign Office spokesman denied Mr Ben-Gurion’s allegations that Arab-British plans for the capture of Haifa, Jerusalem and TelAviv had fallen into Jewish hands. He said that a charge about an air threat was a misrepresentation. “We said that if Jewish aircraft attacked Royal Air Force installations or aircraft we would defend ourselves and attack Jewish aircraft on the ground or in the air.” said the spokesman.

Britain has protested to Israel against the bombing of the R.A.F. airfield at Amman. Royal Air Force units are maintained on the airfield at the invitation of Transjordan under the Anglo-Transjordan treaty. In Tel-Aviv Mr Ben-Gurion said that the Jewish offensive would not be, limited to the frontiers of Israel or even Palestine. Minor Naval Battle A Jewish communique says that Israeli warships and planes in Tel-Aviv and shore batteries beat off an attack by four Egyptian ships on the coast near Tel-Aviv early this afternoon. The Egyptian vessels comprised one corvette, two British type landing craft, and the 2500-ton warship Emira Fawzia. They retired after a threehour engagement. A Jewish bomber scored at least one direct hit, and one Jewish plane failed to return. An Arab Legion commander said that the Jews had violated the “ hold fire ” understanding. The legion conmander ordered his artillery to lay down a barrage 10 times as heavy on Jewish targets. British soldiers who had deserted to fight the Jerusalem Jews in a letter to correspondents said that 10 of an original 22 men had been killed in battle. The letter said: “We are still losing British blood, but it is for revenge.” Food stocks in Jewish Jerusalem are running low. It is 45 days since the last supply convoy reached the city. Egyptian Advance on Tel-Aviv The Jewish High Command at TelAviv announced that its foi’ces had captured the village of Yibna. This means that the advance of Egyptian units in their coastal thrust has reached within 14 miles of Tel-Aviv. Yibna is six miles north of Esdud, where the Jews said they still have the Egyptian spearhead cut off and encircled. The Jews said that the Arabs in the battle for Jenin continued to rush up reinforcements, some from as far as Nablus, but the Jews claim that they repulsed the Arab counter-attacks and held all positions captured. The Associated Press correspondent outside Jenin says Iraqi troops had beaten off two fierce Jewish attacks since June 3 and forced the. withdrawal of a Jewish force of between 3000 and 4000, five miles to the north on the plain of Armageddon. The Iraqi commander estimated Jewish losses at 600 dead and many more wounded. He said: “It is the heaviest blow the Jews have suffered. We threw planes, artillery and armour into the fight. I am convinced we broke the enemy morale. We do not expect a new attack from this direction.” Buildings of the Palestine Potash