September 11, 1975

Number of cos that sell their products to NYC reptdly have revised internal credit procedures or set limits on amt of money NYC may owe them for items already delivered before shipments are delayed or cut off as result of city's current fiscal crisis; though there is no indication that city has failed to pay any of its suppliers, some cos reptdly have complained of unusually slow payments; Golden Equipment Co pres Arthur W Golden reptdly seeks to back out of $50,000 contract to supply office furniture to city; some cos doing business with NYC reptdly are doing detailed studies to determine whether funds to pay for products are coming from Fed, state, or city finances or from grants; city officials reptdly have tried to assure businessmen that their fears are groundless despite widespread anxiety over possible default by NYC; NYC Purchase Comr Robert I Cohen says there has been only 'slight drop-off in number of bidders on city contracts; NYC Controller's office study indicates city's payment performance actually has improved in recent mos; some co execs comment (L)

Lebanese Premier Rashid Karami orders Lebanese troops to take up positions between warring Christian and Moslem factions in Tripoli; announces that Col Hanna Saed, who is promoted to Maj Gen, will replace Maj Gen Iskander Ghanem as army comdr; says Ghanem, who is unpopular with both groups, was given 'leave of absence' to take up diplomatic post; 2 moves follow 8 days of fighting in Tripoli and eastward between Moslems from Tripoli and Christians from village of Zgharta; estimated 100 dead; removal of Ghanem is victory for Karami and setback for Pres Suleiman Franjieh, who resisted replacing him; Saed's principal qualification in present tense situation seems to be that he is noncontroversial; Kamal Jumblat, head of Progressive Socialist party and leader of Lebanese left, criticizes use of army; asserts that fighting in Tripoli, which is Karami's home city, should be controlled by Karami and fighting in Zgharta, which is Franjieh's town, be controlled by Franjieh; inability of 2 to control violence is believed to reflect new development in Lebanese pol; proliferation of bands of armed men who owe no allegiance to traditional pol figures; in Beirut, 2 men are reptd killed in separate incidents; illus; map (M)

Sen Select Com on Intelligence has evidence that CIA has materials for such uses as disabling guard dogs at foreign embassy without killing them, thus aiding agency to enter and leave premise guarded by dogs without owners knowing intrusion occurred (L)

Sept 11: Anti-Defamation League of B'nai B'rith files suit in Fed Ct, NYC, charging Commerce Sec Rogers C B Morton with aiding Arab countries in their boycott of business interests that are directed or owned by Jews or that support Israel; suit alleges that Commerce Dept has been circulating offers for Arab business opportunities to US cos that contain restrictive provisions against persons or cos supporting Israel; alleges that dept, under Morton's direction, has refused to divulge names of US cos that may have cooperated in Arab boycott; demands injunctions preventing Commerce Dept from distributing Arab business offers containing boycott provisions; asks that Morton be directed to divulge all records involving US concerns that may be implicated in Arab boycott; notes that Arab League has carried on worldwide econ, mil and pol campaign against Israel since before '48; alleges that between '70 and '74 more than 46,000 business transactions were reptd in which requests were received for some form of anti-Jewish or anti-Israel econ activity; says that in 36,000 of these cases no information was available concerning compliance with boycott requests; spokesman for Morton denies any wrongdoing; says information requested by league is required by law to be kept confidential; in announcing suit, league's natl dir Benjamin R Epstein notes that in Feb Pres Ford described Arab boycott as 'repugnant' and contrary to Amer ideals; suggests Commerce Dept belied Ford's statement; league's gen counsel Arnold Forster charges that Commerce Dept is 'aiding and abetting the effectiveness of the Arab boycott operation' by hiding identity of US cos complying with it; in related development, NYS Atty Gen Louis J Lefkowitz releases recommendations from rept on econ pressures by Arab financial sources; rept recommends continuing surveillance of dealings with Middle East interests and calls for possible regulation of such dealings either at state level or by SEC; Lefkowitz ordered inquiry in Feb after receiving public inquiries expressing concern about dealings of bank houses that might be making secret agreement with Arab countries (M)

Mayor Beame declares he accepts 'responsibility, along with officials past and present,' for using 'all sorts of fiscal gymnastics' to have NYC provide its traditional broad range of public services; asserts NYC's dilemma 'really has no villains--only victims'; Beame address, his 1st broad response to emergency legis adopted in Albany to forestall city default, is widely seen as public bid to repel persistent suggestions of recent days that he has been reduced to ceremonial Mayor in his own city; Beame says he will establish Deputy Mayor for Finance, that he will continue to press for state to assume costs of city's correctional and ct system, and for power to regulate more closely budgets of nonmayoral agencies such as Educ Bd and Health and Hosps Corp; asserts he will continue to fight for Fed welfare takeover; por (L)