Egypt allows conference denouncing U.S. policies on Iraq, Mideast crisis

18/12/2002| IslamWeb

Egyptian authorities Sunday withdrew their ban on a conference this week that will voice opposition to American policy in the Middle East and threats to attack Iraq, according to an organizer of the gathering. A day earlier, conference spokesman Abdel Aziz el-Hussayni had told The Associated Press that Egyptian State Security officials canceled the event - which was scheduled to begin Wednesday - for political reasons.

But on Sunday, el-Hussayni said the organizing committee had made "intensive contacts with senior politicians and was informed today of the final approval of the Egyptian authorities to hold the conference as scheduled without any reservations."

The two-day conference - "Together Against U.S., Globalization and War in Iraq" - was organized by an international group calling itself "The International Campaign Against Aggression on Iraq and Palestine."

Some 70 prominent Western and Arab figures will take part in the two-day conference including former Algerian President Ahhmed Bin Bella, former U.S. Attorney General Ramsey Clark, an Arab member of the Israeli Parliament, a British member of parliament and former U.N. officials who have worked in Iraq.

A statement released by the organizers said the conference would issued a "Cairo Declaration" Thursday urging the "world's conscience to resist racism, U.S. hegemony and unilateral action in pursuing aggressive wars instead of the laws that govern international relations."

The participants will also discuss a mechanism to organize anti-war activities and back Palestinians in their conflict with Israel.

Egypt, a close U.S. ally and recipient of 2 billion dlrs in aid each year, opposes any U.S.-led military strike on Iraq and supports the Palestinian cause, despite having signed a peace treaty with Israel.

PHOTO CAPTION

Dr. Noaman Gomaa, chairman of Al-Wafd opposition party, gestures during a protest near the U.S. embassy in Cairo in this Nov.18, 2002, file photo. The possibility of a U.S. attack on Iraq has sent anti-war protesters into the streets by the tens of thousands in places like Australia, Belgium, Greece, Italy-- even the United States. But in Egypt, with 68 million people the most populous Arab state and an influential political force in the region, the streets have been quiet despite talk of support for a fellow Arab nation. (AP Photo/Amr Nabil)