Proposed Middle East conference raise questions
Egypt-Regional, Politics, 5/29/2002

The talk about holding conference on Middle East peace to end the current deterioration brought about by Israeli policies and practices raises concern and many questions, according to Mustafa al Fiqi, Chairman of the People's Assembly External Relations Committee.

The source of concern is that the idea of the conference was originally proposed by Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon amid the siege which the Israeli army imposed on the Church of the Nativity and calls to overthrow Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, Fiqi said in an interview with the Egyptian television Sunday night.

"In his call for convening the conference, Sharon focused on certain regional parties, particularly Saudi Arabia, which means that he wants to deal with new players and penetrate the Gulf, starting from the Kingdom," Fiqi said.

If such a conference is held without transparency and clear answers to all raised questions, it would be a vague, suspected process similar to a public relation gathering, he cautioned.

Fiqi referred to concerns that the conference might be aimed to absorb angry reactions to the events of March 29 and after.

Such a conference could be only accepted if it equally involves all parties concerned-including the Palestinian Authority, the UN and the European Union-and aims at entering into developed stages of settlement.

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