890D.01/6–245: Telegram
The Ambassador in France (Caffery) to the Secretary of State
[Received June 2—12:25 p.m.]
3219. The following is translation of communiqué issued last evening by de Gaulle:
“Since the 8th of May the troops of certain French garrisons in Syria in particular at Aleppo, Horns, Homa and Damascus as well as several military and civil French establishments have been sporadically attacked by armed bands at the head of which were often elements of the gendarmerie and the local police of the Syrian Government.
“These disorders began the day after General Beynet, General Delegate and Plenipotentiary of France, had proposed to the Syrian and Lebanese Governments to begin negotiations on the basis of instructions which he had received from the French Government. Our [Page 1131] troops had to resist and were everywhere in control of the situation except in the Djebel Druse which was held only by a few squadrons recruited locally. Our losses total a dozen killed. At Damascus it was necessary to use artillery.
“To ease the situation and to comply with the request of the British Government which expressed its fear that the incidents in Syria might spread to other regions of the Near East the French Government on May 31 ordered the French forces in the Levant to cease fire. This order was carried out in the evening of the same day. In the mind of the French Government it was a question of creating if possible a more favorable climate for conversations with the American and British Governments and later with the Governments of the various Arab States, conversations dealing with the entire situation in the Near East and regarding which moreover the Soviet Government should at least be informed. On June 1st at 4:30 p.m. Holman, Counselor (sic1) of the British Embassy, brought to the office of the President of the Government the text of a message addressed by Mr. Churchill to General de Gaulle which had been read at 3:45 by Mr. Eden to the House of Commons. This telegram having thus been published in its tone and in its form could only permit a public reply, which the President of the Provisional Government of the Republic felt preferable not to address to the British Prime Minister.
“The orders given to the French troops by the French Government are to cease fire and to remain in their positions.”
Sent to Department as 3219, repeated London as 380 and Beirut as 26.
- As in the original. Adrian Holman had the local rank of minister Plenipotentiary.↩