Foreign Relations of the United States, 1964–1968, Volume XVIII, Arab-Israeli Dispute, 1964–1967

223. Memorandum of Conversation¹

Washington, June 8, 1965.

SUBJECT

• Arab-Israel Border Situation; Palestine Liberation Army

PARTICIPANTS

• Mr. Mordechai Gazit, Minister, Israeli Embassy
• Mr. Shimon Moratt, Counselor, Israeli Embassy
• NE—Mr. Rodger P. Davies
• NE—William D. Wolle

Mr. Gazit said that the Foreign Ministry in Jerusalem had reiterated June 7 to Ambassador Barbour that the Israeli Government seriously desires a return to tranquility in the border areas and that it wishes to cooperate with the Jordanian authorities to bring this about. Ambassador Barbour in recent days had also been given copies of messages sent by the GOI to the Jordanian and Lebanese governments via the MACs containing lists of individuals suspected of Fatah connections. There were 29 names on the list for Jordan and a single name on the list for Lebanon.

Mr. Gazit said his government hoped the United States Government would go back to King Hussein in a follow-up to his initiative with Ambassador Barnes several days ago² and, in addition to stressing to the King the Israeli desire for a return to peace along the border, would raise a number of specific points relating to the recent border events. These points had been enumerated to Ambassador Barbour, but Mr. Gazit said he would mention some of them as examples. For one thing, the GOI does not understand why the official Jordanian letter to the Security Council concerning the May 31 Jerusalem incident³ is at odds with what has been learned from the Jordanians themselves to be the real explanation. The GOI wonders what kind of punishment Jordan will impose on the army captain arrested because of that incident, which it considers to have been most serious. Israel fails to understand Jordan’s apparent inability to spot saboteurs moving toward the border, since groups of several persons rather than simply individuals have been involved in some cross-border incidents.

The Israeli Government would continue to supply information concerning Fatah complicity in the sabotage incidents, said Mr. Gazit, though it could hardly supply such a quantity that it became in effect a branch of the Jordan security services. Mr. Gazit expressed gratitude on behalf of the Israeli Government for the USG’s readiness to transmit such information and more general messages to Jordan on its behalf. He went on to note that his government believed the onus was now on King Hussein to see that border tranquility was restored.

Mr. Davies said that U.S. intelligence confirmed the serious desire and efforts of King Hussein to keep potential saboteurs in check. He noted that it was a little too much to assert that Jordan had absolute control of such activities. Nearly 200 Israeli soldiers had, after all, moved almost unnoticed well into Jordan territory during the May 27–28 raids, and even the Israeli security forces could not detect individuals or groups of infiltrators immediately on entry into Israel. He stressed that the USG was quite convinced that any further Israeli military raids would push the Jordanians into some sort of military reaction.

Mr. Gazit referred to PLO efforts to raise a Palestine Liberation Army and stated his government was impressed by the serious steps in process, particularly in Gaza. He spoke of the seriousness with which the GOI viewed the question of keeping UNRWA ration cards from PLA conscriptees. Mr. Davies agreed this was a serious question, reiterated the steps the USG had taken with UNRWA officials regarding it, and expressed again the hope that this issue would be kept out of the press since the glare of publicity would render UNRWA action much more difficult. Regarding the PLO, Mr. Davies said it seemed clear that the Arab states principally concerned were holding the organization at arm’s length. There was a danger, however, in the extent to which the Chinese Communists could make good on Peking’s reported promises to Shuqairy of funds, arms and training.

Mr. Gazit read brief passages from a GOI letter to the Security Council regarding the June 1 explosions at Yiftah and Beit Guvrin,⁴ and spoke briefly of two more recent border incidents. At Beit Qama (about 13 miles north of Beersheba and 6 miles from the Jordan border) an Israeli watchman had come upon four intruders cutting the fence around a water tower and had thereby prevented damage to the installation. At Jisr Shaikh Hussein the Jordanians had fired across the border for 45 minutes with no apparent cause. Mr. Moratt commented that the Jordanians now claimed to have repulsed two Israeli attacks, neither of which in fact ever existed. Mr. Davies commented that the Jordanians undoubtedly were apprehensive about possible incursions. He emphasized that the USG is counseling restraint on all parties concerned although our leverage in one location (Damascus) is at an extremely low level.

1. Source: National Archives and Records Administration, RG 59, Central Files 1964–66, POL 32–1 ISR–UAR. Confidential. Drafted by Wolle on June 9.
2. Telegram 732 from Amman, June 3, reported a discussion between Hussein and Barnes concerning the background of the recent incidents on the Jordan-Israel border. Hussein said concerning Fatah that Jordan was not sponsoring the group, was completely opposed to its alleged activities, and was making every effort to control the border against infiltrations. He expressed willingness to have his comments communicated to Israeli officials. (Ibid., POL 31–1 ISR–JORDAN) On June 4, Davies gave Gazit the substance of telegram 732, stressing that the information must be held very closely within the Israeli Government. (Ibid.)
3. The Jordanian letter, dated June 4, responded to a June 1 Israeli letter charging that Jordanian Army posts had opened fire the previous day across the armistice demarcation line into Israeli territory. (UN documents S/6415 and S/6397)
4. Dated June 4; not printed. (UN document S/6414)