Jerusalem committee resolution important step in right direction
Regional-Palestine, Politics, 8/1/1998

Egyptian Foreign Minister Amr Moussa praised on Friday as "an important step in the right direction" the decisions made by the Al-Quds (Jerusalem) Committee's 17th session.

Moussa, who led his country's delegation to the two-day 17th session held in Casablanca July 29-30, told Egyptian "Al-Ahram" daily that the Committee's decisions are an important step towards a unified Arab position against the Israeli plan aimed at judaizing the holy city of Jerusalem.

The Jerusalem Committee, which convened under the chairmanship of King Hassan II, called on the Islamic countries to stop normalizing relations with Israel until it abides by international legality.

Moussa said all the delegations that attended the meeting were unanimous as to the need to take the necessary measures to face up the dangerous situation prevailing in the holy city.

For his part, Faruk Qaddoumi, Head of the Political Department of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), said the recommendations adopted by the Casablanca meeting "are important, as they settled a great deal of the problems that we are facing in the city of Jerusalem."

"Our action is concrete and we are moving ahead," Qaddoumi said, praising the measures decided to launch the Jerusalem Fund (Bait Al-Mal of Al-Quds).

Palestinians are pinning great expectations on this fund to safeguard the holy city and back its inhabitants, Kaddoumi said.

The Committee appointed Palestinian Ambassador to Morocco Wajih Hassan Al Qassim (Abu Marwane) as director of the Jerusalem Fund.

The Committee endorsed the trusteeship committee for the fund, made up of Morocco and Palestine as permanent Members, and Saudi Arabia (for the Arab World), Iran (for Asia) and Senegal (for Africa). These three members will sit in the trusteeship committee for three years and will be replaced by new members.

The Jerusalem Fund was set up during the Jerusalem Committee's 16th session, held in March 1997 in Rabat. It seeks to preserve the Arab and Islamic heritage in the holy city of Jerusalem.

The Committee called on the fund to take steps to start discharging its duties as specified in its status, including collection of donations and the possibility of issuing bonds in accordance with the provisions of Islamic Law.

Previous Stories:
  King Hassan II expresses hope conditions for holding Arab summit will be examined   (7/31/1998)
  Jerusalem committee calls for halting normalization with Israel   (7/31/1998)
  Financial backing needed to brake settlements, ministers hold side talks   (7/30/1998)

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