Decision to hold annual Arab summit is momentous achievement

Egypt's Foreign Minister Amr Moussa termed as historic and remarkable the Arab league's decision, over fifty years after its inception, to hold an annual summit of the Arab world's leaders.

Thus, all matters pertaining to the Arab world will be placed under the direct supervision of Arab leaders and the summit chairmanship will rotate according to alphabetical order, Moussa said Sunday.

He was speaking at a joint press conference with Arab League secretary general Esmat Abdel Meguid here at the conclusion of the two-day Arab emergency summit, dubbed this year as the al Aqsa Summit.

The Summit will be held at the Arab league headquarters unless the country holding the chairmanship decides to host the summit meetings at home, he said.

Jordan will assume the presidency and host the summit in Amman in March, he added.

Abdel Meguid, on his part, affirmed that the Palestinian people were entitled to international protection to ensure an end to Israeli mal practices and violations on occupied Arab lands.

Arab ties will be severed with any country that will transfer its embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, he warned.

Moussa said that all Arab diplomats around the world will be informed over the summit's resolutions so that they may abide by them.

The Middle East peace process is facing a serious setback and we can say that it has actually collapsed, Moussa said.

It is the Israeli practices that have "oscillated" the peace process, he added.

Moussa, commenting on the two-day emergency pan-Arab summit's final declaration, said that the Arabs directed a message today to Israel that it is no more part of the region.

This is the meaning of cutting economic cooperation, meetings, conferences and activities, he said, adding that no new relations will be established until Israelis go back to the right peace track, not a false peace but a genuine serious peace that does not look nice and taste bitter.

"Israel will not be part of the region, this is the position reflected, formulated and elaborated," he said, warning Israel that any escalation on its part will be met with escalation on the Arab side.

The Arab states will not return to peace talks, bilateral negotiations, and meeting with envoys coming into the region, he said.

Moussa said that Arabs, namely Qatar, is to pay $ 815,000 to set up an international fact-finding committee on the Israeli atrocities in the Palestinian lands.

Asked about the fact that many European countries have already recognized Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and that the US presidential candidates declared they will shift the US embassy to Jerusalem, Moussa said that the European countries recognize west and not East Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, and that the Arabs are determined to sever relations with any country that shifts its embassy.

On the formation of fact-finding committee into the Israeli carnage, Moussa said that the UN security council agreed to the establishment of a mechanism to investigate the facts.

Measures have been adopted to confront the Israeli practices in addition to financial mechanism to support the Palestinian people, he added.

On Israel's reaction to the outcome of the Arab summit, Moussa said: "ask Israel." The Arab position is to reconsider ties with Israel; it is a sound and clear position, he said, adding that Israel had to abide by the law.

Abdel Meguid, on his part, said the final statement is a clear message to Israel and ``I think it has already received it.`` Tunisia has closed its representation office in Israel, he added.

On the fact that Israel was forced out from Lebanon and that military power is the only means to deal with it, Abdel Meguid said that Israel did not withdraw, it escaped, and this is a lesson that it should learn from the smallest Arab country.

Israel is not a myth and power will not benefit it, Abdel Meguid added.

If it is time out of the peace process that Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak wants, Moussa said, he must know that "the Arab leaders are serious, and they have sent a message to Israel in their final statement." The left, right, and center camps in the Arab world are all angry, and this is the message that Israel must receive, so are the Arab streets and the students, nobody can accept what happened, he emphatically stressed.

Abdel Meguid said the killing of the 10-year old Palestinian boy Mohammed al Durra is an international crime, and UN high commissioner for human rights Mary Robinson has taken action upon a request by the Arab League.

Arab actions are based on legitimacy and should Israel refuse them, then it is her business, he said.

On the application of the summit's resolutions, Moussa said Arab countries have agreed that their reactions had to rise to the intensity of Israel's behavior.

The transfer of any embassy to Jerusalem will be considered an antagonistic measure to the Arabs, he added.

Arab Ministers of finance would meet soon with representatives of Arab funds to coordinate the Arab support for the Palestinian people, Moussa said.

Israel has received a harsh lesson from the smallest Arab country, Abdel Meguid said, speaking of Israel's withdrawal from south Lebanon.

Tunisia's severance of ties with Israel is a step "that the Tunisian government and people must be greeted for," he added.

Asked on the present shape of the Egyptian-Israeli and Jordanian-Israeli diplomatic relationships, Moussa said that they had been in fact undermined in light of the latest developments.

Meguid said a change in Israel's attitude towards the peace process will be considered an achievement upon which Arab countries can decide to resume the peace process.

Otherwise, the peace process will remain at a standstill, he added.

If the peace process is restored to a sound track that protects the core of the issue and the process, "we will go for the peace process, but if it is a mere sugarcoated proposal, we will not accept it," Moussa said.

The Egyptian Foreign Minister said no secret decisions were adopted at the Arab summit.

All resolutions were incorporated and publicly announced in the final statement, he added.

There is general agreement among Arab states on the summit's resolutions he said.