World Events in a Month

After the government of Mr. Rashid Karami resigned, His Excellency the President of the Republic charged Dr. Abdallah al-Yafi with forming one. The most important part of the new ministry's task is the rebuilding, before next autumn, of the Lebanese villages destroyed by last month's earthquake, which number 264 villages.

At the beginning of last April the Israelis carried out a treacherous, savage attack on the city of Gaza. They shelled the peaceful civilian quarters, and the harvest of that massacre, in men, women, and children, was 35 dead and a hundred wounded.

The Arab states protested vigorously to the United Nations, and the Egyptian fedayeen produced a new stroke that cast panic into Israel: they penetrated deep into its territory for several days, during which they wrought sabotage and damage, and returned to their bases unharmed.

The United Nations dispatched its Secretary-General, Mr. Dag Hammarskjöld, to the Middle East to study the situation between the Arabs and Israel, so as to ease the sharpness of the tension. Mr. Hammarskjöld is still conducting talks with the Arab and Jewish officials, and he has succeeded in persuading them to a cease-fire without condition or restriction.

His Majesty King Hussein, sovereign of Jordan, accepted the invitation of Mr. Shukri al-Quwatli, President of the Syrian Republic, and His Majesty paid an official visit to Damascus, during which he laid plans with the Syrian officials for unifying the military and economic efforts of the two countries.

President Gamal Abdel Nasser traveled to Jeddah and met with the two kings, Saud and Ahmad, King of Yemen. The talks among the three leaders resulted in the signing of the Egyptian-Saudi-Yemeni pact, which resembles the Egyptian-Syrian-Saudi pact.

World circles had long looked forward to the official visit paid to Britain by the two Soviet leaders, Marshal Bulganin, head of the government, and Mr. Khrushchev, Secretary-General of the Communist Party. The visit began on April 18 and lasted ten days, during which the Soviet and English leaders held friendly discussions to bring their points of view closer together on the most important international problems now standing, chief among them: the question of disarmament — the German question — European security — and the state of tension in the Middle East.

The two Russian leaders presented Queen Elizabeth with a fur "cape" whose value is estimated at 16 thousand pounds sterling, and the Duke of Edinburgh and his son Charles with two fine Russian steeds. And for the little Princess Anne, a small bear!