Arab Foreign Ministers conclude extraordinary meeting

Cairo, January 01, SPA -- Arab Foreign Ministers concluded here
yesterday their extraordinary meeting chaired by Prince Saud
Al-Faisal, Saudi Foreign Minister.

During the meeting, the ministers discussed the situation in Gaza
Strip and a unified Arab position against Israeli aggression on Gaza
Strip in addition to ways of providing aid for the Palestinian
people.

The Arab Ministerial Council decided to set up an Arab ministerial
committee comprising of member states of the Arab peace initiative
committee. This Arab ministerial committee will be headed by the
Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and Arab League Secretary General. The
members of this committee will be Jordan, Syria, Palestine, Qatar,
Lebanon, Egypt, Morocco and Libya (Arab member of UN Security
Council). This committee is assigned to head for the UN Security
Council to follow-up the implementation of this decision and submit
its report on this issue to the Council's meeting to be held
immediately after the end of this task. Such meeting will be open to
follow-up the developments of the Israeli brutal aggression on the
Palestinian territories.

The Council expressed its strong condemnation of the barbaric Israeli
aggression on Gaza Strip, which resulted in thousands of Palestinian
martyrs and injured and heavy destruction. The Council rejected the
allegations saying that this aggression is a self-defense.

The Arab Ministerial Council condemned Israel for imposing siege on
the Palestinian people in Gaza Strip, which led to a sharp
deterioration in the humanitarian situation. The Council made Israel
full responsible for such deterioration and emphasized the immediate
lift of the siege.

The Council called in its final decisions to submit an immediate
request to convene Security Council session. The Council also
demanded UN Security Council pass a resolution ordering Israel to
immediately stop this aggression, lift the siege, open the crossings,
end the policy of the collective punishment, provide international
protection for the Palestinian people and ensure the implementation
of these commitments to bring calm. The Council also authorized an
Arab ministerial delegation of the members of Arab Peace Initiative
Committee to authorize the Security Council to achieve these
objectives.

The Council renewed emphasis on the importance of providing urgent
humanitarian assistance by Arab countries to Gaza Strip, praising the
efforts by Egypt to deliver the aid through Rafah crossing.

The Foreign Ministers welcomed Egypt's opening of Rafah crossing for
humanitarian purposes, taking into consideration Egypt's assurances
of its willingness to make efforts and work with the parties
concerned to take necessary steps to open Rafah crossing on an
ongoing basis in accordance with the rules already agreed upon in
November 2005.
The Council called upon all Palestinian factions to immediately begin
work and create the appropriate environment to restore Palestinian
unity and directly participate in efforts to achieve reconciliation
sponsored by Egypt. The Council stressed that the Palestinian
National reconciliation is the true guarantee for the restoration of
legitimate Palestinian rights and the establishment of an independent
Palestinian state.

The Arab Foreign Ministers emphasized on supporting the Palestinian
National Authority and its legitimacy institutions to enable it to
face the effects of this aggression.

The Council urged the Arab League Council to support international
relief organizations, especially the United Nations Relief and Works
Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA).

The Arab Foreign Ministers Council made Israel (the Occupying Power)
full responsible for damage inflicted on the Palestinian
infrastructure and individuals, calling on the international
community, especially France the sponsor of the Conference of Donor
Countries for the Palestinian People, to take necessary action to
convene the meeting in order to rebuild what has been destroyed by
the Israeli occupying forces.

The Council called upon the High Contracting Parties to the Fourth
Geneva Convention to convene a conference to implement the
Declaration issued during its conference held on December 5th, 2001,
regarding the need for the application of the Convention on the
Palestinian occupied land, urging the Contracting States to compel
Israel to abide by its provisions in coordination and cooperation
with the Organization of the Islamic Conference and the African
Union.

The Council discussed the invitation of Qatar, Syria and Yemen to
hold an extraordinary Arab summit to stop the Israeli aggression on
Gaza.

--SPA
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