Mid-East peace a ‘dire
need’ for all says UJPO

TORONTO — In an urgent call
to Canadian Jewry, the United
Jewish People’s Order, issued a
statement by its National Resi-
dent Board, January 31, in which
it laid down a number of pre-
requisites for achieving peace in
the Middle East.

Stressing the importance of Is-
rael’s security, the document
urges ‘‘the Jews of Canada and all
friends of Israel everywhere, to
consider the issue of Israel-Arab
peace as your highest priority.
“The situation calls for deep un-
derstanding to see that the just
demands and aspirations of the
Arab people are also basically in
the interest of the State of Israel.
Without peace in the Middle East,
there can only be a future of more
bioodshed and grave threats to
the very security of Israel.”

The UJPO proposals include
these three points dictated by
“‘earnest consideration and
common sense”’:

“1. Peace and understanding
cannot be achieved by maintain-
ing Jewish settlement in the
Sinai, by maintaining and even es-
tablishing new settlements on any
of the occupied territories. This
policy is fraught with danger for
the security of Israel.

“2. Even if Sadat were pre-
pared to sign a separate peace tre-
aty with Israel, peace in the Mid-
dle East could not come without
an accord between Israel and all
its Arab neighbors, including the
solution to the problem of the

-(Palestiniaiy’Arabs “who ‘are’ enti-
tled to their own sovereign state
alongside the State of Israel.

“*3. Begin’s plan to grant
‘self-government’ to the Palesti-

‘Without peace in the
Middle East, there can
only be a Sabie of more
bloodshed and _ grave
threats to the very security
of Israel.’

nian Arabs cannot be realized. It
lays the basis for continual strife

and bloodshed. This plan cannot
be viewed as a serious peace in-
itiative on the part of the Begin
government, it is a plan that can
only lead to more wars and can
only endanger the peace of the
world.”’

The UJPO statement notes that
Begin’s offer of Palestinian self-
government, with the proviso that
the West Bank and Gaza would
remain under the control of the
Israeli army, ‘‘... means nothing
more than a continuation of the
policy of creeping annexation. It
likens the “‘self-government’’ pol-
icy to that of the British in North-
ern Ireland, with its resultant
bloodshed.

‘*At the outbreak of the Six Day
War, in 1967’’, the UJPO state-
ment recalls,’’ the then Prime
Minister of Israel, Levi Eshkol,
categoritcally declared:

‘‘We do not seek territories, we
only seek security and peace.’

““The founding father of Israel,
David Ben Gurion, repeatedly
declared that Israel does not need
more territories than she has, that
all Israel required is the recogni-
tion of her sovereign rights by her
Arab neighbors.

“Dr. Nachum Goldmann, until
recently, president of the World
Jewish Congress, repeatedly cal-
led for Israel’s withdrawal from
the occupied territories and a re-
turn to the 1967 borders, after
achieving peace. The same posi-
tion has been taken by many lead-
ing Israelis,’’ the UJPO points
out, “‘among them many retired
military leaders — all of them
Zionists.

“In the interests of the State of
Israel, in the interest of Middle
East peace and peace in the world
— Israel must be prepared to
make meaningful concessions,”
the statement says later.

“Israel’s security and survival
demands: |

“ta) Israel’s withdrawal from
the occupied territories after
negotiating agreements for possi-
ble border adjustments.

“‘b) withdrawal of previously
established settlements in oc-
cupied territories and cancella-
tion of all plans for new settle-
ments. —

“‘c) agreement to provide for
self-determination of the Palesti-
nian Arabs for their independence
and freedom from military occu-
pation. -

“‘d) allunresolved problems —
the procedure and time-table of
withdrawal from occupied ter-
ritories, the delineation of estab-
lished borders and many other is-
sues should be handled by recon-
vening the Geneva Conference,

under the chairmanship of the Un--

ited States and the Soviet Union.

“‘Peace in the Middle East is
the dire need of the people of Is-
rael, the Arab lands and the entire
world,’’ the statement concludes.

_of concocting ‘‘nightmarish’’ scenarios of Soviet intentions to tor

FRENCH LEFT UNITES FOR SECOND BALLOT :

PARIS — The French Communist Party, Socialist Party and Radicd
Party have agreed, following a meeting March 14, to campaign togeth¢!
for the second run-off vote March 19. The first ballot saw the lef f
candidates leading by 1.1% of the total.

A joint statement sets out several measures a left unity governmet!
would immediately adopt: a 40% hike in the minimum wage, fam
allowances, old age pensions and unemployment insurance; the lower
ing of retirement age from 65 to 60 years and introduction ofa fifth wee
compulsory vacation for all. The nationalization of banks and France $
9 biggest industries is also agreed on. The U.S.A. and its NATO allié_
have publicly expressed concern over the possibility of the Communi!
Party playing a key role in the new government.

McGOVERN HITS SABOTAGE OF SALT-2 TALKS
WASHINGTON — U.S. Senator George McGovern last week
assailed cold war attacks on disarmament talks with the USSR
called for speedy completion of the Strategic Arms Limitation Talks)
(SALT-2). In a 62-page report, based on his visit to the USSR, Hut
gary, Poland and Yugoslavia, McGovern accused the CIA and Pentago?

pedo SALT-2.

“It is no favor to the American people,” the reports says, ‘‘to
allowed to spend billions on more arms ... the SALT-2 agreemetl
should be evaluated as a means of permitting both sides to deter war al
reduced dangers and costs.”’

BONN-BRAZIL NUCLEAR PACT ADDS TO THE “CLUB” ;
BONN — Brazil has the capacity to join the nuclear club because?
anuclear pact signed last week with the Federal German Republic. Thé
move has come under sharp attack because Bonn turned over to the
military government in Brazilia a complete network of plants
technology. Brazil, note critics of the pact, has not signed the Nuclea
Non-Proliferation Treaty. It has large reserves of uranium ore bul,
until now, lacked the technical capacity to build a bomb.

U.S..SOUTH KOREA WAR GAMES COME UNDER FIRE
PYONGYANG — The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea ha
strongly condemned the joint U.S.-South Korea war games title
“Team Spirit-78” which involves more than 100,000 troops. The exer”
cise includes all branches of the military and, according to DPRK
sources, is of ‘an obvious provocative nature.”’

PORTUGUESE CP GAINS 27,000 NEW RECRUITS
LISBON — The Portuguese Communist Party has gained 27,000
new members since it began its drive for 10,000 new members last
August. Of the new members, 63.1% are workers, 62.1% under 30,
years of age and 19.2% are women.

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i ies

By TOM FOLEY

The Egyptian commando raid
on Cyprus was a criminal act in
more ways than one. When the
Israeli government staged a simi-
lar raid on- Entebbe Airport in
Uganda; President Anwar el-
Sadat of Egypt and his govern-
ment were among the many who
rightly called the raid a violation
of international law.

Now Sadat and Egypt are guilty
of the same crimes. And many
people are beginning to put two
and two together, and to suspect
that a great deal more lies behind
this raid than appears on the sur-
face.

Youssef el-Sebai, general sec-
retary of the Afro-Asian Peoples
Solidarity Organization (AAP-
SO), who was murdered by two
terrorists in Nicosia, was editor of
the semi-official Cairo daily
newspaper, al-Ahram (The
Pyramids). :

Sebai was one of the original
‘*Free Officers’’ who led the 1952
revolution against King Farouk in
Egypt. He was a longtime suppor-
ter of the policies of the late Presi-
dent Gamal Abdel ‘Nasser: of
Egypt, particularly the policy of
close Soviet-Egyptian friendship.
He was also a firm supporter of
the just cause of the Palestinians,
led by the Palestine Liberation
Organization (PLO).

Following his abortive raid at Larnaca airport, Sadat used the funeral
ceremony for his dead commandos to whip up anti-Palestinian, anti-
Cypriot feelings. But what really was behind the whole affair?

The organization Sebai
headed, AAPSO had criticized
publicly Sadat’s sellout to im-
perialism and zionism. Its meet-
ing in Nicosia, in Cyprus, rather
than in its Cairo headquarters,
was in part to give its members
the chance to discuss freely and
criticize Egyptian policies.

PACIFIC TRIBUNE—MARCH 24, 1978—Page 8

Sebai, as editor of Al-Ahram,
was in a rather powerful position
in Egypt. He had immense public
prestige as a result of his role in
the 1952 revolution and also as a
bestselling novelist and short
story writer.

_ Sadat has been busily dismantl-
ing the gains of the 1952 revolu-

tion, reversing all of Nasser’s
policies, and even allowing the
corrupt, reactionary old Wafd
Party to re-form.

An open clash between Sebai
and Sadat therefore would seem
to have been in the making.

The two terrorists who gunned
down Sebai in the lobby of the
Nicosia Hilton were doing Sadat a
favor, in a sense. The terrorists
are not Egyptians: one is a
Kuwaiti, the other a Jordanian.
The murder was committed on
Cypriot soil. So Sadat has abso-
lutely no legal grounds what-
soever for demanding that they be
sent to Egypt ... for what?

Sadat however was so ex-
tremely anxious to get the two
into his hands that he secretly sent
a 60-man commando force to
Larnaca Airport, in clear viola-
tion of international law. Interna-
tional law terms such actions
“acts of war.’ What we have
here is a country’s armed forces
being ordered to violate the bor-
ders and sovereignty of a friendly
State; that is an ‘‘act of war’ by
any definition.

Thus Sadat was willing to
commit an ‘‘act of war,’’
Entebbe-style, in order to get the
two terrorists. Why? Why was he
SO anxious to get them?

The other strange thing is thé
timing of when the Egyptial
commando force went into oper@
tion. On being discovered by thé
Cyprus National Guard (army)
forces, the Egyptians pledged not
to take any action which woul
interfere with the negotiations
going on between the terroristS
and the Cyprus government.
Cyprus was hopeful that the 1!
hostages, all AAPSO delegates
and including PLO delegates:
could be released unharmed am
that the terrorists would surret
der peacefully. —

Yet, President Spyros Ky?
rianou of Cyprus revealed in #
news conference after thes¢
events, that the Egyptian com
mandos went into action as soo?
as it was learned that the negoti@”
tions had succeeded. The com
mandos stormed out of theif
plane, firing at the Cypriot Na
tional Guard and at the airport
tower, where President KyP
rianou was present.

' The Egyptian commandos a>
peared intent on not letting the
terrorists surrender to the Cyprus

authorities, at all costs. It cost

them 15 dead and 19 wounded. —

And they failed. Cyprus has the
two terrorists in custody, and 15
placing them on trial for murdet-
What they say could be revealing: