THE PRESIDENT'S DAILY BRIEF 16 JANUARY 1976

• Document Type: FOIA
• Collection: President's Daily Brief 1969-1977
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): 0006015005
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: T
• Document Page Count: 10
• Document Creation Date: August 14, 2016
• Document Release Date: August 24, 2016
• Publication Date: January 16, 1976

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The President's Daily Brief
January 16, 1976
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Exempt from general
declassification uhedule of E.O. 11652
exemption category 513(1),(2),(3)
declassified only on approval of
the Director of Central Intelligence
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January 16, 1976
Table of Contents
USSR: Further changes have been noted in the posi-
tion of Soviet ships in the western Mediter-
ranean and in African waters. (Page 1)
!
Lebanon: Christian Phalangists launched operations
yesterday to take over the Palestinian refugee
camps in east Beirut that have been blockaded
by Christian militiamen since early January.
(Page 2)
Notes:
USSR; Argentina; Cuba (Pages 3 and 4)
FOR THE PRESIDENT ONLY
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.?
Casablanca-0
Morocco
G/fofCadii
,Rota
Strait a -
Gibralty
Gulne
Conakry
Ivory
Coas
Abidjan
Atlantic Ocean
559118 1-76
Gulf of Guinea
500 lop() miles
500 1000 Kilometers
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a
2124.
-
Sea
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Pointe Noire Brazzaville
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Angola
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USSR
Further changes have been noted in
the position of Soviet ships in the west-
ern Mediterranean and in African waters.
The Sverdlov-class cruiser left the Mediter-
ranean yesterday afternoon in company with two
F-class diesel-powered attack submarines. Some 14
hours later, the three ahios returned to flip mpai-
terranean.
The Kresta-II-class cruiser that was in Cona-
kry, Guinea, left port yesterday morning and was
moving north.
The Kotlin-class destroyer that arrived in
the Conakry vicinity Wednesday night was not sighted
in port, suggesting that the cruiser and destroyer
made a rendezvous at sea and are currently operating
together. The Soviet LST and oiler are still about
200 miles southwest of Abidjan, Ivory Coast, where
they have been for the past three days.
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FOR THE PRESIDENT ONLY
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Palestinian Refugee Camps
SYR I A(
111:11,4 KAT
tilM4
MEDITERRANEAN
SEA
BEIRUT
-.12f
.Zagharta
-
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-
xesitt
?Da?rho gr./
.,zDamascus
SYRIA
Golan
Heights
0
20
559119 1-76
ISRA,EL
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LEBANON
Christian Phalangists launched oper-
ations yesterday to take over the Pales-
tinian refugee camps in east Beirut--Tall
Zatar and Jisar al-Basha--that have been
blockaded bu Christian militiamen since
January 4.
The Christians took over the Palestinian ref-
ugee camp at Dibayah on Tuesday. In retaliation,
the Palestinians have surrounded the predominantly
Christian villages of Damour and Jiyah south of
Beirut.
We have no new information on Palestinian in-
volvement in the fighting.
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Clashes in the north have been especially
heavy around Tripoli and Zagharta.
Beirut airport remains open, but British Air-
ways has suspended operations, and several major
international airlines have delayed plans to re-
sume scheduling.
The severity of the fighting has prompted an-
other call from the Secretary General of the Arab
League for Arab action. Members of the League are
unlikely to consider convening a summit until after
President Franjiyah meets President Asad in Damas-
cus this weekend to discuss Syria's peace pro-
posals.
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NOTES
The first reports of local bread shortages
have appeared in the Soviet press.
The Ministry of Agriculture's newspaper, Rural
Life, has acknowledged receiving complaints of
shortages from widely spread rural areas. The ar-
ticle made no mention of last year's harvest fail-
ure, blaming instead mismanagement by local supply
organizations. We expect the overall bread supply
will be adequate, but spot shortages will continue.
The Argentine cabinet shake-up adds to the
instability of the political scene.
President Peron's appointment of politically
inexperienced men to the portfolios of interior and
justice and her failure to fill top jobs in the
foreign and defense ministries have left the gov-
ernment even weaker than before. Peron's decision
to remove those advisers
is widely interpreted in Buenos
Aires as an act of defiance.
The constraints against military action
against the President continue to diminish, but
one major element--the potentially disruptive role
of Peronist labor--remains.
(continued)
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Fidel Castro made a lackluster defense yester-
day of Cuba's military role in Angola.
Speaking before foreign journalists, Castro
acknowledged for the first time that Cuban "soldiers"
were in Angola; previous regime spokesmen had claimed
they were "volunteers." His use of this type of
press conference rather than a public speech to
get this point across is significant; he uses this
technique when he wants to make foreign headlines
but keep the information from the Cuban people.
Castro's Angola policy is unpopular in Cuba.
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FOR THE PRESIDENT ONLY
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Top Secret
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