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Arab Leaders Condemn Israeli Killing, Call for Boycott
Arab leaders, speaking at an emergency summit Saturday in Cairo, condemned Israeli bloody crackdown on Palestinian armless civilians and called for boycott of the Jewish state and a holy war against it.
Syrian President Bashar al-Assad urged Arab countries to halt all forms of normalization with Israel and reactivate boycott of the Jewish state.
Israel should be made "to pay the price for spilt Palestinian blood" in the three weeks of clashes in Palestinian territories, said Assad, who made his debut at an Arab summit after taking office in July following the death of his father, Hafez al-Assad.
At least 15 heads of state took part in the two-day Arab summit to address the clashes between the Palestinians and Israeli security forces, which have killed more than 110 Palestinians and wounded thousands others.
Jordan's King Abdullah II called for Arab leaders to send a clear message to Israel that they would never abandon the Palestinians.
"Israel's position and its brutal and excessive reaction in the use of unjustified force deserves condemnation," Abdullah said.
But "our reaction will not be restricted to denunciation and condemnation, and the humanitarian support and financial aid from our countries to heal the wounds of the Palestinians will not be the maximum extent of our action," he said.
He blasted "the intransigence of Israel which scorns international law and demands for a comprehensive and just peace," and blamed the current wave of violence on "extremist forces" in the Jewish state.
Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh and Vice Chairman of the Iraqi Revolutionary Command Council Izzat Ibrahim called for an international force to protect the Palestinians and for a jihad, or Islamic holy war, against Israel to free occupied Arab lands.
Saudi Crown Prince Abdullah Ibn Abdul-Aziz called on the Arab summit to set up two solidarity funds for the Palestinians worth a total of 1 billion U.S. dollars.
Abdullah proposed setting aside 200 million dollars for families of Palestinians killed in clashes with Israel and the other 800 million dollars for development projects in the Palestinian territories.
Saudi Arabia would contribute 250 million dollars to the two funds, said the crown prince.
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