ISRAEL / MIDDLE EAST

Arab Foreign Ministers
Hold Second Closed Session

 March 26, 2002
 

Arab foreign ministers held a second closed session Monday afternoon under the chairmanship of Lebanese Foreign Minister Mahmoud Hamoud.

The Ministers discussed political, economic and social issues tabled on the agenda of the two-day Arab summit which opens in Beirut on Wednesday.

Arab foreign ministers held their first closed session before noon yesterday immediately following the inaugural session which was confined to the speeches of the Lebanese foreign minister and Arab League Secretary General Amr Moussa.

They agreed on the draft resolutions to be taken by the' summit.

A draft resolution to support the Palestinian Intifada call for continued political and material support to the Palestinian people and the Palestinian leadership in their heroic steadfastness in the face of Israeli acts of suppression an terrorism.

The resolution declares support to the Palestinian people in their legitimate struggle to restore their national right to self-determination and the establishment of an independent Palestinian State.

It stresses that overall and just peace is a constant Arab attitude in accordance with international legitimacy and calls for withdrawal of Israeli forces from all Palestinian and Arab territories occupied in June 1967. effected in compliance with resolutions 242, 338 and 425, dismantling Israel settlements should be dismantled, the establishment of a Palestinian State with Jerusalem as its capital, confirming the right of refugees to return to their homes and Israel's acceptance of the principle of peaceful co-existence on the basis of a just and overall peace with all peoples of the area and full security for all in the area.

The draft resolution calls on Arab states to advance 330 million US dollars in support of the budget of the Palestinian National Authority, at the rate of 55 million dollars monthly, for six months as of April 1, 2002, which is automatically renewable for another six months so long as Israeli aggression continued and so long as the Palestinian authority needed this support.

These sums will be advanced as non-refundable grants.

Arab countries are called upon to advance an additional sum of 150 million dollars for the Aqsa fund and the Aqsa Intifada.

The draft resolution condemns continued Israeli occupation of part of Lebanese territory and supported Lebanon's efforts to complete liberation of its territory from Israeli occupation.

The draft resolution asserts the right of Palestinian refugees to return to their homes.

It rejects the inclusion of Hezbollah in the list of terrorism and stresses that it is important to differentiate between terrorism and legitimate resistance against Israeli occupation and affirms condemnation of international terrorism.

The draft resolutions condemn continued Israeli occupation of the Arab Syrian Golan and support Syria's right to restore the occupied Golan and ask for withdrawal of Israel to the June 1967 borders, declare full Arab solidarity with Syria and consider any aggression on Syria an aggression on the Arab nation.

The draft resolutions uphold the sovereignty of the United Arab Emirates on three islands (greater and lesser tunab and Abu Moussa) occupied by Iran. 

The draft resolutions affirm the territorial integrity of Sudan and rejection of any partition attempt and appreciate Sudan's efforts at reconciliation among all the people of Sudan and support to the Egyptian Libyan initiative.

The draft resolutions call on the United States to lift economic sanctions unilaterally imposed on Sudan.

The draft resolutions affirm the Arab principled and constant stand which condemns international terrorism in all forms and call for an international agreement, within the' framework of the United Nations, on a definite definition of international terrorism to include state terrorism and condemn state terrorism being practiced by Israel against the Palestinian people.

The draft resolutions completely reject attempts to link the' phenomenon of terrorism with Islam and the Arabs and denounce, harassment to which Arabs and Muslims are subjected in some countries which is contrary to the rules of international law and human rights.

SOURCE:

Arabic News