Mubarak warns of Palestinian hunger revolution

At a gathering of university students Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak warned yesterday of a Palestinian hunger revolution if Israel continued the blockade it imposed on Palestinian self-rule areas

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"Preventing food and medicines would lead to unpredictable consequences," the president said. "Progress in the Middle East peace process is the only guaranteed way to attain security," he added

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Commenting on the continuation of the Israeli policy toward settlement expansion, Mubarak stated the Organization of Islamic Conference, the Arab League, the Jerusalem Committee, as well as a number of recommendations tackled the subject of Jewish settlements in Abu Ghneim, yet Israel went ahead, causing negotiations to halt on all tracks

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Mubarak denied having any idea about an Egyptian-Jordanian-Israeli-Palestinian summit. "Good preparations should precede such a summit, otherwise the gathering would turn into a sheer media session without positive results," he announced

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Mubarak also reiterated earlier statements that US aid to Egypt was not a pressure tool. "We are not going to starve without it," the president said. Egypt cannot expect the aid to last for good, he added.