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No Arab Leaders Opposed to Mideast Summit: Mubarak
Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak said on Saturday that no Arab leaders were opposed to the proposed Mideast summit in Egypt aimed at calming down the tense situation in the Palestinian territories.
A summit has been proposed to bring together Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat and Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak to put an end to the more than two weeks of deadly Palestinian-Israeli clashes and seek revival of the peace process.
Both Arafat and Barak agreed on Saturday to attend the summit, which could be held early as Monday in Egypt's Red Sea resort of Sharm el Sheikh.
"No Arab leaders are against the Sharm el Sheikh summit as long as it will serve the interests of the Palestinian people and as long as they agree to it," Mubarak told Egypt's official Middle East News Agency.
The Egyptian leader was commenting on Arabs' worries that the Mideast summit may abort or sideline the emergency Arab summit due in Cairo on October 21 and 22, and that it has met opposition from some Arab leaders.
"Both the Sharm el Sheikh (Mideast summit), if held, and the Cairo Arab summit, are working towards the same ends: to defend Palestinian rights, rescue the Palestinian people from the (Israeli) aggressions and establish guarantee that would prevent the (aggressions) from reoccurring," Mubarak said.
About 100 Palestinians have been killed and over 2,000 others wounded by Israeli security forces in the last 16 days of violent clashes, which have devastated the peace process.
"I am in constant touch with all Arab leaders. We have exchanged views on the developments and we consulted on what we should do," Mubarak said.
"All of us agree on the need to put an end to the Israeli aggression and to salvage the Palestinian people. We are in agreement and our actions and moves are concerted."
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