 |
| Lebanon's
blocking of Arafat's speech left no room for the Palestinian
delegation to attend. |
BEIRUT,
March 27 (IslamOnline & News Agencies) - The Palestinian delegation
pulled out of the Arab Summit in Beirut Wednesday after Lebanon barred
Palestinian President Yasser Arafat's planned speech by satellite link.
The
head of the Palestinian delegation to the Arab Summit, Farouk Kaddoumi,
told the Qatari-based Al-Jazeera satellite channel that the summit is an
Arab not a Lebanese one and that its main purpose is to discuss the
Palestinian question. With Lebanon's blocking of Arafat's speech, there
remains no need for the Palestinian delegation to attend, he added.
Arafat
was supposed to deliver his speech immediately after the speech of Saudi
Crown Prince Abdullah, Kaddoumi said. “However, Lebanese President
Emile Lahoud, who is also current president of the summit, ignored me
when I sent him a signal to start broadcasting Arafat’s speech,” he
added.
After
the Palestinians walked out to protest Lebanon’s decision to block
Arafat's speech, rumors spread out that the Saudi delegation pulled out
too. However, the official spokesman of the summit, Lebanese culture
minister Ghassan Salama said during a press conference that the Saudi
delegation did not withdraw due to the Palestinian move, but it was due
to the illness of Saudi Prince Nawaf who is a member of the delegation.
Salama added that efforts are being made to bring the Palestinian
delegation back.
Salama
said that the withdrawal of the Palestinian delegation is the result of
a misunderstanding, whereby the Palestinians “lost patience” due to
the long list of speakers, and they told Arafat to read his speech on
Al-Jazeera instead. But he said the speech could be broadcast once again
in the evening.
On
his part, Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Saud al-Faisal denied that his
delegation had quit the Arab summit.
"The
delegation will take part in all meetings of the summit," which
continues through Thursday, March 28, said Prince Saud.
Saudi
Arabia had expressed disapproval of the move of barring Arafat’s
speech and called for an official apology to be presented to the
Palestinians.
It
was said that the United Arab Emirates (UAE) delegation also withdrew
from the first session without explaining any reasons. “I heard that
the UAE delegation pulled out of the meeting, but I was not told
officially,” Salama said.
The
absence of 12 Arab leaders from the Arab summit in Beirut cast a shadow
Wednesday on its opening day. The 14th Arab summit has been billed as a
historic opportunity to forge a peace deal with Israel. The summit
debates a Saudi initiative for collective Arab peace with Israel.
The
current president of the summit, Lebanese President Emile Lahoud,
delivered the opening speech and said that Arab leaders adopted a Syrian
proposal to form a commission to put in writing the Saudi plan for peace
with Israel.
Lahoud
said the committee will be in charge of drafting the plan for a
"collective Arab" peace with Israel formally put forward at
the Arab summit earlier Wednesday by Saudi Crown Prince Abdullah bin
Abdul Aziz.
The
commission includes Egypt, Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, Morocco, Saudi Arabia
and the Palestinians, Lahoud said.
Crown
Prince Abdullah proposed last month that the Arab states offer normal
relations with Israel if it gives up the Arab lands it occupied in the
1967 Middle East War.
Announcing
his plan, Prince Abdullah said: "I propose that the Arab League
present a collective program to the U.N. Security Council based on
normal relationships and security to Israel and parallel with an
independent Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital and the
right of the Palestinian people to come back to their homeland."
During
his speech, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad said that there is a big
difference between resistance and terrorism just like the difference
between a usurper and a victim. He said Israel presents a clear model of
state terrorism.
The
summit opened Wednesday morning amid tight security by Jordan's Prime
Minister Ali Abul-Ragheb, who described the Saudi initiative as "a
corner-stone of a comprehensive peace in the region". He criticized
Israel for "putting obstacles in its way".
Abu
Ragheb, whose country handed over chairmanship of the summit to Lebanon,
kicked off the meeting with words of blessing for the Saudi plan.
"We
back and support this initiative...which constitutes a cornerstone for a
comprehensive peace and sends a clear message to the whole world that
the Arabs want peace...and that Israel is the one putting obstacles in
its way," Abu Ragheb said.
The
heads of the United Nations, the European Union and the organization of
French-speaking nations (OIF) joined Arab leaders and all delivered
opening speeches.
The
speeches focused on the importance of a just and lasting peace in the
region based on Israel's withdrawal from all Arab land it occupied in
1967.
