Arab foreign ministers meeting in Cairo on Sunday said the Saudi initiative to end spiraling violence with the Palestinians could be Israel’s Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's "last chance" for peace.
Wrapping up two days of discussions that prepared the ground for a summit of their leaders in Beirut later this month, ministers from the 22-member Arab League debated the Saudi proposal to offer Israel peace in exchange for Israeli-occupied Arab land.
The plan, floated last month, is projected to top the agenda when Arab leaders meet in Lebanon on March 27 and 28.
"I believe that the Beirut summit is the last chance for Sharon and the Israeli leadership," said Kuwait's Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Sheikh Mohammad al-Salem al-Sabah, who chaired the Cairo ministerial meeting. "I think Arabs should offer the Israeli leadership this chance," he told a news conference.
The Arab League's Secretary-General Amr Moussa also said the initiative could be the "the last chance to save peace".
Asked what measures Arabs would take if Israel failed to respond to the Saudi plan, Moussa said: "Why should we reply to such a question?...We just give clear messages." (Albawaba.com)
© 2002 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
