Report: Arab states condemn Israeli aggression on Lebanon
Arab reactions denounced the repeated Israeli shelling to vital areas in Lebanon due to which 8 civilians were killed and 86 were injured, while 5 bridges and electric stations were destroyed.
The Arab League denounced the aggression as AL Secretary General Esmat Abdul Meguid said in a phone call yesterday evening with Lebanese Prime Minister Salim al-Hoss that the AL stands by Lebanon so that it can liberate occupied Lebanese lands.
Abdul Meguid informed al-Hoss that he sent urgent message to United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan, the head of the UN Security Council and the five permanent members on the Security Council to inform them of the AL's opposition to the continuous Israeli attacks on Lebanon.
Ahmed Ben Holi, an assistant secretary general at the AL, said in press statements that the AL refused and severely resented the Israeli attack and the death of innocent people, saying, "Shelling of the economic establishments and the infrastructure in Lebanon forms a very serious escalation and clear challenge to all international laws and a breach of the April Understanding," referring to the AL's support for Lebanon.
Holi said the AL will make an urgent move on the international and Arab political and diplomatic levels to confront such brutal agrressions.
In Damascus, Syria strongly denounced the brutal air raids launched by the government of outgoing Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Official information sources in Damascus said yesterday that the Israeli jets and the losses they caused not only indicate no sense of responsibility in Tel Aviv's government but an aggressive and "devilish" stance toward peace.
Saudi Arabia denounced yesterday the Israeli acts of destroying Lebanon's infrastructure, shaking peace and stability in the area and obstructing the peace process.
It has also asked the league's secretary general to interfere to put an end to these attacks.
Kuwaiti Foreign Minister Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmed al-Sabah condemned the Israeli raids on Lebanon and urged the international community to intervene to end this aggression.
The Kuwaiti minister said, "This attack forms a serious threat to Lebanon's sovereignty, security and stability.
In Amman, Jordan's King Abdullah II made a phone call yesterday evening with U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, during which he discussed with her the development of the Israeli attacks. He urged the Israeli government to stop these attacks to maintain peace process and not to place new obstacles in its way.
King Abdullah also made phone calls to Syrian President Hafez al-Assad, Lebanese President Emile Lahoud, and Israeli Prime Minister-elect Ehud Barak and discussed with them the development of the situation and condemned these attacks, expressing his strong anxiety toward the increasing tensions in the area.