HC Deb 05 December 1956 vol 561 cc1233-5
38. Mr. Benn

asked the Minister of Defence what orders were given to General Stockwell when he was put in command of the forces sent ashore at Port Said; and if he will publish in the OFFICIAL REPORT that part of the directive which gave the military objectives of the operation.

Mr. Head

General Stockwell's orders were to carry out the military operations necessary to secure compliance with the conditions laid down in the communication addressed to the Governments of Egypt and Israel on 30th October. No further directive was issued.

Mr. Benn

In that case, can the Minister tell the House why General Stockwell reported in Port Said that his goal had been complete seizure of the Canal, and will he please explain from whom General Stockwell received those orders, if not himself?

Mr. Head

If the hon. Member will read the communication which was addressed to the Governments of Egypt and Israel, he will see that it included the occupation of Ismailia and Suez. That was stopped because of the unconditional cease-fire by both the Israeli and Egyptian Governments.

41. Mr. Mikardo

asked the Minister of Defence if he will give an up-to-date estimate of the Egyptian casualties resulting from the recent Anglo-French action.

59. Mr. Hayman

asked the Minister of Defence whether, as a result of the recent visit of the Paymaster General to Port Said, he will give an up-to-date estimate of the numbers of civilians killed and wounded there.

64. Mr. G. M. Thomson

asked the Minister of Defence whether he will make a further statement on the number of Egyptian casualties in Port Said in the light of information drawn to his attention by the hon. Member for Dundee, East.

67. Mr. Warbey

asked the Minister of Defence what is now his estimate, based on the latest available information, of Egyptian civilian casualties in Egypt as a whole, and in Port Said in particular.

71. Mr. Hastings

asked the Minister of Defence how many of the civilians of Port Said were killed and injured, respectively, in the recent bombardment; and how many of these were children.

73. Mr. de Freitas

asked the Minister of Defence his latest estimate of the number of civilians killed or wounded during our aerial attacks on Egypt.

Mr. Head

On casualties in Port Said I would ask hon. Members to await the reply to be given at the end of Questions this afternoon by my right hon. and learned Friend the Paymaster-General.

I have no information about casualties elsewhere in Egypt.

Mr. Hastings

Has the right hon. Gentleman's attention been called to photographs, said to have been taken in Port Said, which have been published in this country on the responsibility of the International News Service, showing many dead children as well as adults? Can he say whether those appalling photographs are faked or not?

Mr. Head

I have seen a number of photographs and some of them have been sent to have their authenticity examined. I think that many of them are of extremely dubious origin. I draw the attention of hon. Members to the fact that I have placed in the Library a number of photographs which give a much fairer picture of the damage in Port Said.

Mr. C. I. Orr-Ewing

Is it not true that in a film of horrors which has been prepared for propaganda purposes by Nasser there are included shots of the fighting in Budapest? Is not that a most arrant attempt to deceive the people of this country?

Mr. Head

The authenticity of much of this propaganda is extremely doubtful. I am seeking confirmation of this fact, and I would rather not say anything until I have something firm to say.

Mr. Hayman

Is the right hon. Gentleman aware that the photographs in the Library, which I have just examined, give very little information? Is he aware that I have received from a constituent a letter which her son wrote from Suez? He said: You know, Mum, the destruction is very bad here, whole blocks of houses destroyed and hardly a building free from shell or bullet holes. When we went in the debris was still everywhere. It is all a pack of lies about the 'military targets', it would be impossible not to hit civilians' buildings here.

Mr. Head

I do not agree with the hon. Member about the photographs in the Library. What they show very clearly is that the damage in Port Said has been grossly exaggerated. The propaganda photographs have been restricted to the Arab town, which was highly inflammable and which caught fire. I further point out to hon. Members that if one considers the operation, it is quite remarkable how very small the amount of damage was.

Mr. Wigg

Does the right bon. Gentleman still stand by his statement in the House on 21st November that only 100 civilians were killed and 540 wounded?

Mr. Head

I ask the hon. Member to await the full statement on this subject which is being made by my right hon. and learned Friend the Paymaster-General at the end of Questions.

Mr. Remnant

What truth is there in the recent report that Nasser shot a number of Egyptians? Will my right hon. Friend publish what information he has about that?

Mr. Head

I have no first-hand information about that.

44. Mr. Thornton-Kemsley

asked the Minister of Defence what was the military appreciation, at the time of the cease-fire in Egypt, of the time it would take for Anglo-French forces to establish themselves in Ismailia and Suez; and what would then have been the length of the lines of communication from the bridgehead at Port Said.

Mr. Head

The Answer to the first part of the Question is about seven days and, to the second, 101 miles.