News stories from Saturday March 18, 1978

Summaries of the stories the major media outlets considered to be of particular importance on this date:

Investors with whom Bert Lance is involved have agreed either to sell their stock in Financial General Bankshares Inc. or purchase all shares in the company at an above-market price within a year. Under a court-approved settlement, Mr. Lance and his associates agreed to the settlement after the S.E.C. filed a civil complaint charging them with violating federal securities laws by failing to disclose that they had purchased about 20 percent of the shares in Financial General, a $2.2 billion company which controls 13 banks. The suit also contained the first allegation by a federal agency that Mr. Lance might have violated his pledge to a Senate committee last year that he would not become involved in private banking or banking policy issued while he was budget director. [New York Times] The administration, in another step toward curbing the arms race in space, asked the Soviet Union to begin negotiations on banning hunter-killer satellites. The request was made despite strong reservations in the Defense Department over starting talks before the United States develops a comparable weapon. Moscow was expected to agree and administration officials said it was likely that the first round of talks would begin in April. [New York Times] The United States asked the Security Council of the United Nations to call for the immediate withdrawal of Israeli forces from southern Lebanon and proposed that the United Nations establish a peacekeeping force there to insure "the return of effective authority in the area to the government of Lebanon." The proposal also demanded strict respect for Lebanon's "territorial integrity, sovereignty and political independence." Quick action on the proposal was being sought by American and Lebanese officials, who fear that Syria will intervene to try to halt the Israeli advance. "We have an imminent threat that this could become a full-scale war," said Ghassan Tueni, Lebanon's chief delegate. [New York Times] Syria's territory is open to all Arabs who want to go fight against Israeli forces in southern Lebanon, President Hafez al-Assad said in a speech. Mr. Assad said Syrian territory would also be open to equipment sent to fight the Israelis. "Syria," he declared, "will remain the big power forming a spearhead in the resistance to every invasion and aggression against the Arab nation." Mr. Assad, however, did not offer direct Syrian support against the Israelis. [New York Times] Thousands of Lebanese and Palestinians fled the Israeli attacks in southern Lebanon, creating the possibility of a social explosion. It was estimated that more than 100,000 civilians were in flight toward Beirut, where most of the refugees sought shelter, often by force, in schools, clinics, offices, buildings under construction and vacant apartments. The Lebanese Red Cross estimated a total of about 700 guerrilla and civilian casualties, including 300 killed since the Israeli offensive started four days ago. [New York Times] Rent from Yankee Stadium is far below what New York City hoped for, and the Yankees have told New York City that they planned to cut the rent even lower. The baseball club grossed after taxes $9.3 million in stadium admissions last year and took in $4.8 million more through concessions. Theoretically, the city should have received nearly $1 million in rent, but it will be paid less than $150,000. The imbalance between income and rental is legal, in keeping with the terms of a 1972 lease between the club and the city, but Comptroller Harrison Goldin said the lease was "a disgraceful deal for the city." He has started an audit of the Yankees' finances and intends to press for a renegotiation of the lease. [New York Times]