Office of the Historian

867N.01/1–647: Telegram

The Ambassador in Egypt (Tuck) to the Secretary of State

restricted
Cairo, January 6, 1947—2 p. m.

13. Arab League meeting yesterday, Lebanese Premier al-Solh, Nokrashy Pasha,2 Yussef Yassin,3 and representatives Iraq, Syria, and Trans-Jordan decided each state should send delegations to Palestine Conference, London.4 Azzam Pasha5 informed Ireland6 he does not expect to attend giving poor health as reason.

League has addressed note to British Government requesting it invite Arab Higher Committee to send Delegation to London for Conference. Note attaches importance to such representation in belief it will pave way to results desired by all concerned.7

Note also despatched requesting British to restore civil rights to Amin al-Husseini8 and to grant him permission to return to Palestine.

Sent by pouch to Arab capitals. Repeated to London.

Tuck
  1. The Egyptian Prime Minister.↩
  2. The Saudi Arabian Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs.↩
  3. Telegram 10, January 8, from Damascus, reported that on January 6, Syrian Prime Minister Jamil Mardam issued a statement to the press in which he outlined the three principles governing Arab participation in the Palestine conference: rejection of partition; rejection of a Jewish state; and refusal to sit with the Jews at the Conference table (867N.01/1–847).↩
  4. Abdul Rahman Azzam, Secretary-General of the League of Arab States.↩
  5. Philip W. Ireland, Attaché at the Embassy in Egypt.↩
  6. According to telegrams 210, January 11, and 264, January 14, from London, the British Government invited the Arab Higher Committee to send a delegation to the Palestine conference. The invitation was accepted. (867N.01/1–1147, 1–1447)↩
  7. The Grand Mufti of Jerusalem.↩