Arab Foreign Ministers Begin Their Regular Meeting in Cairo Among demands by Iraq to Ministers to Intervene to End the War

24/03/2003| IslamWeb

Arab League foreign ministers began their regular biannual Arab League ministerial session in Cairo, Monday morning with Iraqi foreign minister, Naji Sabri demanding a "unified stance from the Arabs ... to condemn this occupation, to stop the war immediately and withdraw the invaders." On the first foreign trip by an Iraqi official since the start of war, Sabri insisted Sunday that Iraq would not surrender easily and accused Arab countries assisting the U.S.-led coalition of "stabbing the Iraqi people in the back."

Sabri arrived for the meeting in the Egyptian capital on Sunday. Going into a one-on-one session with Arab League Secretary-General Amr Moussa, Sabri told reporters he also wanted Monday's meeting to "condemn those who are providing facilities and are contributing to stabbing the Iraqi people in the back."

Asked afterward about Turkey, which is not a member of the Arab League, assisting the war effort, he said: "If some think they can cause harm without being harmed, they would be deluding themselves and they have to wake up from their delusion."

On Friday, Turkey granted permission for U.S. and British warplanes to fly through Turkish airspace on their way to Iraq.

Kuwait Wants Iraqi Attacks on Coalition Forces on its Territory on Ministerial Session's Agenda

Meanwhile, Kuwait - one of several Arab states that have allowed coalition forces in - sent its own urgent request to the Arab League asking that Iraqi attacks on it be added to Monday's agenda. Iraq has fired several missiles over its southern border toward U.S. troops and Kuwait City since the start of the U.S.-led campaign to oust Saddam Hussein last week.

Kuwait, invaded and occupied by Iraqi forces in 1990, has been the launching pad for the ground war under way in Iraq.

Bahrain is home base to the U.S. Navy's 5th Fleet, and the United States placed hundreds of troops in the Jordanian desert to man anti-missile batteries.

Sabri, the first Arab official to arrive for Monday's conference, said developments Sunday - including coalition casualties and prisoners taken - demonstrated Iraqi resolve.

Sabri arrived in Cairo from Syria, where he delivered a similar message to his Syrian counterpart in Damascus.

But Iraqi Vice President Taha Yassin Ramadan said in Baghdad that his country does not expect much from the Arab governments and he instead urged the Arab people to act.

Moussa said Sunday that Arabs should stand by their pledge not to assist coalition forces against Iraq. Arab leaders pledged not to do that in their recent summit at Sharm-al-Sheikh in Egypt earlier in March.

Arab diplomats, however, said privately the ministers were not expected to go beyond usual rhetorical statements of solidarity.

Mubarak Harshly Critical of Baghdad

Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, who has been harshly critical of Iraqi President Saddam Hussein, said Sunday Egypt had tried its best to avert war and worried it wouldn't end soon.

"The Americans said it would be short, but what I fear is that it will be prolonged, which might cause great casualties ... and this will have consequences on the people and the region," Mubarak told reporters.

In Lebanon, where anti-war protesters burned American products in the northern city of Tripoli, President Emile Lahoud expressed his country's solidarity with Iraq, saying the war was "a blatant violation of human rights as well as international laws." Neighboring Syria's ruling party demanded an immediate end to the "unjustified, illegal and immoral" war in remarks carried by the official Syrian Arab News Agency.

Sabri Blasts Jordan

Jordan, meanwhile, became the first Arab state to expel Iraqi diplomats - something the U.S. has urged nations to do. It ordered five diplomats to leave the country for actions "incompatible" with their diplomatic duties. The embassy in Amman remained open.

"It is a sovereign decision and stems from purely security reasons," Jordanian Information Minister Mohammad Affash Adwan said. He wouldn't elaborate, but other officials, insisting on anonymity, said the Iraqis had been suspected of spying.

Sabri described the Jordanian move as unexpected and "regrettable."

Anti-war demonstrations continued Sunday in several Arab cities.

In Amman, around 700 trade union members - mostly leftists and Muslim fundamentalists - urged Arab governments to come to Iraq's defense. "Arab leaders, open the door of jihad," or holy war, they shouted. "Arab leaders, where are your armies?"

PHOTO CAPTION

Iraqi Foreign Minister Naji Sabri speaks during a news conference at the Arab League headquarters in Cairo, Egypt Sunday, March 23, 2003. Sabri is in Cairo to attend an Arab League foreign ministerial meeting on Monday. (AP Photo/Mohamad al-Sehety)