Editorial Note
Cairo advised, on January 6 that Ibrahim Abdel Hady, the Egyptian Prime Minister, had telephoned the text of an aide-mémoire to Ambassador Rahim at Washington. The aide-mémoire was said to have expressed “appreciation for the friendly sentiments of US designed to reestablish peace in Palestine”; to have “insisted that Egypt had observed the Security Council’s resolutions in regards to Palestine while Zionist adversaries had not done so and had more over bombarded refugee camps and hospitals. Accordingly Egypt had been obliged to exercise legitimate defense against attacks”; and to have expressed astonishment at the accusation of bombarding Jerusalem, for “ever since May 15 [1948],” Egypt had “endeavored to spare Jerusalem and other holy places from the consequences of military action.” (telegram 15, 501.BB Palestine/1–649)
The aide-mémoire, an undated message from the Egyptian Embassy to the Department of State, was handed to Mr. Satterthwaite by Ambassador Rahim on January 7. (867N.01/1–749)