Moussa starts an American- European tour against striking Iraq

The secretary general of the Arab League (AL) Amr Moussa yesterday started his tour on Europe and the USA in order to defend the Arab states' rejection of an attack on Iraq.

Moussa's tour is covering Italy, Switzerland and the USA. The spokesman for the Arab League, Hesham Youssef, said that the "various threats and campaigns launched against several Arab states, especially the warning of attacking Iraq, will be on top of the agenda of the meetings and talks the AL chief will make."

In a statement, the spokesman said that Moussa in Milan, Italy will take part in a conference on international cultural cooperation before he will head for Davos ( Switzerland) to take part in the activities of the World Economic Forum and then to New York to take part in the works of the UN General Assembly.

Moussa is due to discuss in the USA with the representatives of the Arab organizations and the American- Arab organizations current arrangements for convening the first Arab- American conference due to be held there in May 2003 in Detroit, Michigan, when a Pro - Arab American lobby will be launched.