Arab foreign ministers have begun arriving in Cairo to attend an urgent Arab League meeting on Wednesday to discuss increasingly aggressive Israeli tactics in the Occupied Territories.
The meeting will address developments in the Occupied Territories and Israeli actions including the demolition of houses, assassinations, blockades, invasion of land under PA control, and the seizure of Palestinian establishments in occupied Jerusalem, particularly Orient House, the informal headquarters of the Palestine Liberation Organization.
The event follows a four-party meeting last Wednesday that grouped Palestinian President Yasser Arafat, Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmad Maher, Jordanian Foreign Minister Abdel Ilah Al Khatib and Arab League Secretary General Amr Moussa.
A Palestinian delegate, Mohammad Sbeih, told the official Kuwaiti news agency, KUNA, that Arafat would be presenting a report to the meeting over the deteriorating situation in the Occupied Territories and diplomatic efforts aimed at securing a UN Security Council decision to provide protection for Palestinians.
During the debate at the council on Monday, the US rejected a draft resolution that was presented by the Palestinians and backed by Arab and Muslim countries.
In preparation for the Wednesday meeting, Egyptian Foreign Minster Ahmed Maher spoke by phone on Monday with Lebanese Foreign Minister Mahmoud Hammoud and Palestinian Minister of Local Administration and senior negotiator Saeb Eraikat - Albawaba.com
