FROM OUR ARCHIVES

65 YEARS AGO

A Jordan ultimatum that fire would be opened on the Tel Aviv-Jerusalem road if fire in the direction of Imwas village [now part of Canada Park] was not stopped, was formally withdrawn. In his apology, the Jordanian delegate expressed his “amazement” that such a threat had been made. The delegate agreed that the ultimatum was in violation of the General Armistice Agreement, by which both sides renounced the use of force to settle disputes. Neither the Arab Legion nor the Jordanian government knew of the ultimatum, which was made by a local commander who evidently misunderstood orders and was later reprimanded. This misunderstanding followed an incident the week before, in which an Israeli soldier was killed when Jordanian forces opened fire on soldiers providing protection to Israelis harvesting vegetables near Kalkilya.

In the meeting of the Mixed Armistice Commission, Jordan filed two complaints. One referred to an incident in which Israeli soldiers allegedly entered Yalu village, near Latrun, killed a night watchmen and stole his rifle. The other complaint alleged that Israeli soldiers were shooting at Arab harvesters in no-man’s-land near Imwas. The Arab Legion officer at the scene subsequently issued the ultimatum that fire would be opened on the Tel Aviv-Jerusalem road.

50 YEARS AGO

After 60 hours of battle, Israeli forces controlled most of the West Bank of Jordan, including the Old City of Jerusalem, Nablus, Ramallah, Jericho and Bethlehem; in Sinai they cut through to the approaches of the Suez Canal and captured Sharm e-Sheikh. When defense minister Moshe Dayan was asked whether peace depended on territorial negotiations, he replied: “I am ready to give peace and take peace.” He confirmed that he still supported the idea of a confederation of Israel and Jordan, adding, “I also said that the real enemy of Jordan is Egypt. The only country that can protect Jordan is Israel.”

IDF chief chaplain Shlomo Goren, came running to the Western Wall carrying a Torah scroll. He recited the sheheheyanu blessing and sounded a passionate blast on the shofar. Dayan came soon after, and there he made his declaration: “We will not give up this place.” Prime minister Levi Eshkol took part in afternoon prayers at the Wall, accompanied by the two chief rabbis. He was the first leader of a Jewish government to visit the site of the Temple since its loss 1,897 years earlier.

25 YEARS AGO

Hamas and Fatah signed a joint statement designed to regulate the killing of alleged informers and decrease fighting between the groups. The statement said the two movements “call for thinking deeply about the subject of liquidating collaborators.” They also agreed to form a joint committee, “in order to unite efforts against the occupation forces.” Armed gangs identified with Fatah and Hamas had been responsible for most of the interfactional killings in the territories due to differences of opinion over the peace process, which Hamas supported and Fatah opposed, and over the intifada.

– Daniel Kra