THE PRESIDENT'S DAILY BRIEF 6 SEPTEMBER 1976

• Document Type: FOIA
• Collection: President's Daily Brief 1969-1977
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): 0006466832
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: T
• Document Page Count: 12
• Document Creation Date: August 14, 2016
• Document Release Date: August 24, 2016
• Publication Date: September 6, 1976

Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2016/07/05 : CIA-RDP79T00024A000200030005-1
The President's Daily Brief
September 6, 1976
2
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2016/07/05 : CIA-RDP79T00024A000200030005-1
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2016/07/05 : CIA-RDP79T00024A000200030005-1
Exempt from general
declassification schedule of E 0 11652
exemption category 5B(1),(21.(3)
declassified only on approval of
the Director of Central Intelligence
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2016/07/05 : CIA-RDP79T00024A000200030005-1
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2016/07/05 : CIA-RDP79T00024A000200030005-1
FOR THE PRESIDENT ONLY
September 6, 1976
Table of Contents
ISRAEL-EGYPT: Neither Egypt nor Israel is likely to back down
on conflicting claims in the Gulf of Suez, but Egypt may be
temporarily content to handle the issue through diplomatic
channels. (Page 1)
LEBANON: It is unlikely that the meeting of Syrian President
Asad, King Husayn of Jordan, and Lebanese president-elect
Sarkis on September 27 is for the purpose of forming an
alliance--as is widely speculated in Beirut. (Page 2)
HIJACKING: We have not yet established the identity of the hi-
jackers who seized a KLM DC-9 airliner late Saturday.
(Page 4)
LIBYA: An official of the ministry of foreign affairs sharply
rebutted on Saturday remarks made in the US concerning
Libya's involvement in international terrorism; within hours
President Qadhafi emphasized to an Amercian newsman his de-
sire to begin a dialogue with the US. (Page 5)
NOTES: USSR-Japan; Korea; Turkey-Greece (Pages 6 and 7)
FOR THE PRESIDENT ONLY
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2016/07/05 : CIA-RDP79T00024A000200030005-1
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2016/07/05 : CIA-RDP79T00024A000200030005-1
Gulf of Suez
EGYPT
Suez
Line E \
Line E The Egyptian line
Line J The Israeli line
Line M. The line separatmg the lsraeli-con-
/ trolled area from the area south of
line E and west of line M, and the
areas of buffer zones 2A and 26
B/ -1. The buffer zone between lines E
and J
61.-2A S The buffer zones along the Gulf of
Bl -28 Suez
Line M
\,
Ramadan Field ID
SINAI
s Buffer Zone -2A
"Israeli Claimed Median
(Approximation)
o 40MILES
40KILOMETERS
Butler Zone-2B
?? Tur
Line"
? \
?
To: Hurghada 30 miles
Rdd Si
70909 9-76
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2016/07/05 : CIA-RDP79T00024A000200030005-1
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2016/07/05 : CIA-RDP79T00024A000200030005-1
FOR THE PRESIDENT ONLY
ISRAEL-EGYPT: Neither
Egypt nor Israel is
likely to back down on
conflicting claims in
the Gulf of Suez. After
showing the flag in the
disputed area on Sat-
urday, however, the
Egyptians may be tem-
porarily content to
handle the issue through
diplomatic channels.
Israeli Foreign Minis-
ter Allon reacted de-
fensively on Friday to
the US demarche regard-
ing the incident that
had occurred earlier
in the week.
By sending patrol boats to the dis-
puted oil drilling site but avoid-
ing a fight, the Egyptians probably
hoped to do two things: demon-
strate their determination not to
be pushed around by the Israelis
and galvanize the US into pressing
Egypt's case harder with Israel.
Foreign Minister Fahmi told Ambas-
sador Eilts on Saturday that Pres-
ident Sadat considers the issue a
"test case"--presumably of both
Israeli intentions and US willing-
ness to stand up to the Israelis
when Washington regards Israel to
be clearly in the wrong.
Allon accused the US oil companies
of allowing themselves to be used
to further an Egyptian political
campaign against Israel. He also
implied that Washington--by "tak-
ing sides" in what the Israelis
consider to be a matter strictly
between themselves and Egypt--was
violating its commitment in the
second Sinai accord not to support
any proposal disadvantageous to
Israel.
Ambassador Toon could detect no
give in the Israeli position and
gained the impression that the
Israelis believe any retreat on
their part would be interpreted in
Cairo as a sign of weakness and
lead to further Egyptian challenges.
--continued
1
FOR THE PRESIDENT ONLY
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2016/07/05 : CIA-RDP79T00024A000200030005-1
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2016/07/05 : CIA-RDP79T00024A000200030005-1
FOR THE PRESIDENT ONLY
For a brief period on
Saturday, Israeli and
Egyptian gunboats were
within several hundred
meters of each other,
but no shots were ex-
changed.
LEBANON: The announce-
ment that Syrian Pres-
ident Asad, King Husayn
of Jordan, and Lebanese
president-elect Sarkis
will meet in Damascus
on September 27?shortly
after Sarkis is sched-
uled to take office--
has raised broad spec-
ulation in Beirut that
an alliance among the
three is in the making
and that this, in turn,
will help end the Leb-
anese conflict.
50X1
The Israelis claim the Egyptian
boats did discharge a few rounds,
apparently accidentally. Later
the Israelis shot two buoys that
marked the drilling site out of
the water.
Since then, the disputed area has
been quiet. The Egyptian navy has
reduced its alert status, and the
two Egyptian patrol boats involved
in the incident, along with two
other patrol boats, are in port
at Hurghada. Two motor torpedo
boats from Suez may be en route
to join them.
The Israelis still had two boats
in the area late Saturday, but the
rest of their force--three or four
other patrol boats--have returned
to anchorage off El Tur.
We doubt that Asad has done any-
thing more than raise the idea of
a closer working relationship among
the three states in recent talks
with Sarkis and the King. He is
also unlikely to see such a plan
as a means of bringing the Lebanese
conflict to an end.
It is true, however, that Asad has
been talking to Husayn for some
time about ways to translate their
economic and military cooperation
into a,loose confederation. He
may view the inclusion of Lebanon
in such an arrangement as a means
of legitimizing Syria's presence
there and of ultimately strength-
ening Syria's position vis-a-vis
Israel.
--continued
2
FOR THE PRESIDENT ONLY
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2016/07/05 : CIA-RDP79T00024A000200030005-1
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2016/07/05 : CIA-RDP79T00024A000200030005-1
FOR THE PRESIDENT ONLY
Husayn referred obliquely to this
possibility during his visit to
Moscow early this summer when he
spoke of "building a new reality"
between Jordan and Syria and linked
this to the "national role" Syria
is playing in Lebanon.
50X1
50X1
--continued
3
FOR THE PRESIDENT ONLY
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2016/07/05 : CIA-RDP79T00024A000200030005-1
50X1
50X1
50X1
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2016/07/05 : CIA-RDP79T00024A000200030005-1
FOR THE PRESIDENT ONLY
Arab League represen-
tatives, who convened
on Saturday, decided to
postpone the summit un-
til the third week of
October. Despite pro-
tests from Lebanese
Christians, the con-
ference will be held in
Cairo.
HIJACKING: We have not
yet established the
identity of the hijack-
ers who seized a KLM
DC-9 airliner late Sat-
urday.
Three bombings on Friday in Homs,
a town on the northern border with
Lebanon, will surely add to the
growing uneasiness in the Syrian
military. Eight people were re-
portedly killed when a bomb ex-
ploded at a bus station, and an-
other explosion blew up a genera-
tor that provides most of the city's
electricity. We have no details
as yet on the third bombing.
The decision to postpone the sum-
mit probably derives, at least in
part, from a desire to give pres-
ident-elect Sarkis time to form
his new government before partici-
pating in the meeting.
The aircraft--which was bound
from Malaga to Amsterdam--was
seized 20 minutes after a refuel-
ing stop in Nice. Three men,
apparently all Arabs, carried
out the hijacking and demanded
the release of eight prisoners
held in Israel in exchange for
not blowing up the aircraft.
The plane eventually landed at a
small airfield in Larnaca, Cyprus.
According to press reports, the
hijackers agreed to release the
75 passengers and five crew mem-
bers in return for safe conduct
to another country, apparently
Libya.
--continued
4
FOR THE PRESIDENT ONLY
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2016/07/05 : CIA-RDP79T00024A000200030005-1
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2016/07/05 : CIA-RDP79T00024A000200030005-1
FOR THE PRESIDENT ONLY
LIBYA: Undersecretary
for Foreign Affairs
Durdah issued a sharp
rebuttal on Saturday
to recent remarks by
you and Governor Carter
concerning Libya's in-
volvement in interna-
tional terrorism.
Within hours of Durdah's
press conference, Pres-
ident Qadhafi granted
a private interview
to Arnaud De Borchgrave
of Newsweek in which
he emphasized his de-
sire to begin a dialogue
with the US.
The Palestine Liberation Organi-
zation reportedly refused to ne-
gotiate with the hijackers, and
has condemned their action. The
radical Popular Front for the
Liberation of Palestine headed by
George Habbash has denied respon-
sibility for the hijacking.
Nothing has been heard from Wadi
Haddad who recently broke with
the PFLP and who was responsible
for the recent hijacking that
ended at Uganda's Entebbe air-
port.
Durdah's diatribe was delivered
to about a hundred journalists
covering the celebration of the
seventh anniversary of President
Qadhafi's coup. Most were from
Third World and communist countries.
Durdah accused "US presidential
candidates of competing for votes
in a Zionist environment," and
lamented that Libya's support for
the Arab cause had made it a tar-
get of the US.
It is not unusual for the Libyans
to lash out at the US in public
while privately making concilia-
tory overtures. Moreover, Qadhafi
may calculate that he must argue
strongly against charges that
Libya is involved in terrorism at
a time when he suspects the Egyp-
tians are preparing to use the
pretext of Libyan recklessness
to invade his country.
--continued
5
FOR THE PRESIDENT ONLY
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2016/07/05 : CIA-RDP79T00024A000200030005-1
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2016/07/05 : CIA-RDP79T00024A000200030005-1
FOR THE PRESIDENT ONLY
Soviet
Japan
50X1
North Korea and the
United Nations Command
reached initial agree-
ment Saturday as to the
separation of military
forces in the Joint
Security Area at Pan-
munjom.
NOTES
50X1
50X1 50X1
50X1
Minor differences were resolved
when the Koreans accepted a UNC
counterproposal on passage of
non-military personnel and vehi-
cles across the Military Demarca-
tion Line.
Pyongyang approached these nego-
tiations seriously and appeared
anxious to see them brought to a
successful conclusion. Presumably
the North Koreans hope this agree-
ment will help them in their im-
age-building efforts in the wake
of the Panmunjom incident of Au-
gust 18.
The South Koreans have been in-
formed of the agreement and have
expressed their general satisfac-
tion.
--continued
6
FOR THE PRESIDENT ONLY
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2016/07/05 : CIA-RDP79T00024A000200030005-1
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2016/07/05 : CIA-RDP79T00024A000200030005-1
FOR THE PRESIDENT ONLY
The Turkish seismic
research ship is car-
rying out is work in
international waters,
where it is being
shadowed by two Greek
ships, according to
the Turkish press.
The Aegean situation will be one
of the topics discussed at an
extraordinary meeting of the Tur-
kish national security council
today.
Greek Prime Minister Karamanlis,
in a major speech on Saturday,
expressed willingness to negotiate
with Turkey in "patience and calm"
despite Turkey's "high-handed
actions" in the Aegean.
7
FOR THE PRESIDENT ONLY
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2016/07/05 : CIA-RDP79T00024A000200030005-1
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2016/07/05 : CIA-RDP79T00024A000200030005-1
Top Secret
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2016/07/05 : CIA-RDP79T00024A000200030005-1