Oasis of Peace

Even in tranquil Rhodes, U.N.'s Palestine Mediator Count Folke Bernadotte was offered a mediation job. Two local soccer teams, the Dorics and Diagonos, both claimed the Rhodian championship, and the local one-sheet newspaper suggested that Bernadotte compose the quarrel. (Bernadotte was too busy.) Apart from that, all was serenity in the Dodecanese island which Bernadotte had chosen for his Palestine peace talks. Governor General Nicholas Mavris welcomed correspondents, many straight from embattled Palestine: "Now you have been able to discover an oasis of peace."

Perhaps the happiest Rhodian of all was Michael Stamatoglu, manager of the Hotel des Roses. For the remaining half of the four-week truce period, business would be brisk. Floor Waiter Georgiu was intrigued by Bernadotte's request that half of the rooms reserved should be in one wing of the hotel, half in the other, as far apart as possible. "There are separate staircases too," said Georgiu with a knowing wink, "which may be convenient."

By week's end, Jews and Arabs had not yet agreed to get together at the same conference table. But both sides decided to send "working parties" of experts to Rhodes. "Negotiations are still in preliminary stages," said Bernadotte. "We must move gradually--a hasty step could spoil the prospects." One big obstacle still blocked the way to a possible settlement: the Jews said they would never give up Israeli sovereignty, the Arabs said they would never recognize it.

But Bernadotte was pleased that the truce agreement was being observed. Last week U.S. planes patrolled Palestine coasts, U.N. observers checked Israeli imports for war supplies, manned checkpoints on the road to Jerusalem as big food convoys moved to the city's Jews. In answer to Bernadotte's call for more help, 50 U.N. employees from Lake Success signed up to go to Palestine. Some were guards, others were stockroom clerks or statisticians or employees in the U.N. movie unit. Among the gear hastily issued them before they took off from La Guardia Field for Palestine were .35-caliber Smith & Wesson revolvers, without ammunition. If Bernadotte chose to issue them bullets, the little band in white caps and grey uniforms would become U.N.'s first armed force.

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