890E.01/5–2745: Telegram

The Minister to Syria and Lebanon (Wadsworth) to the Secretary of State

157. Herewith summary of yesterday’s reports:

In Lebanon no outward change or relief to troubled leaders. PriMin called following meeting with Syrian Acting PriMin to urge promptest possible reassuring statement by Brit, French and Amer Govts.

One week ago, he said, simple forthright French declaration that no more troops would arrive could probably have calmed situation; since then too much had happened for us to count on that sufficing; today most effective additional curative would be for all French troops [Page 1106] to leave cities immediately; elsewise countrywide civil war in Syria seemed inevitable with sympathetic anti-French rising in Lebanon.

At this meeting PriMin’s need for further arming of gendarmeries to reestablish order in such degree as Gen. Paget (irrespective of French objection) might decide was necessary most effectively to reestablish order was listed as third urgent desideratum; a fourth was assurance that Troupes Spéciales would be early transferred irrespective of progress of treaty negotiations.

Decision was also taken that Govts could no longer cooperate with French in OCP;52 to do so in present state of security would be to invite failure of grain collections with resultant threat of famine in urban areas; this threat would become reality were revolt to sweep the country; Govts were willing to advance necessary Lebanese pounds 60,000,000 for crop purchases and to retain 50 odd Brit technical experts now serving in OCP.

Syria and Lebanon, he added, have now asked for immediate meeting of Arab League Council heretofore belated in deference to Ibn Saud’s wish that Faisal attend.

[Here follow accounts of anti-French demonstrations at Damascus and alarming reports from Aleppo of desertions by Troupes Spéciales, the wounding of persons by shells or grenades, and damage to houses.53]

Wadsworth
  1. Office des Céréales Panifiables, a joint Franco-British organization which monopolized the purchase and distribution of grain, particularly wheat, in Syria and Lebanon.
  2. In telegram 159, May 27, 1945, 10 p.m., the Minister to Syria and Lebanon reported serious clashes between Troupes Spéciales and demonstrators at Hama (890D.01/5–2745).