Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat received further Arab support in Sanaa Sunday, where Yemeni President Ali Abdallah Saleh repeated the call for an international protection force to be sent to the Palestinian territories, the SABA agency said.
Saleh also called for resolutions agreed at the Arab summit in Cairo and the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) in Doha to be followed up.
The Arab summit in October threatened to freeze Arab-Israeli relations and granted one billion dollars in aid to the Palestinians.
The OIC summit in early November "invited" its 56 members to break off diplomatic relations with Israel and asked the UN Security Council to "ensure an international protection for the Palestinian people".
Saleh said back in October he was ready to send thousands of Yemeni soldiers to fight alongside the Palestinians and defend the Holy sites in Jerusalem.
On his arrival in Yemen from the United Arab Emirates, Arafat thanked President Saleh for his support for the Palestinian cause.
In November, he also called for a force to be sent to the Palestinian territories, in order to protect the Palestinians against the "extermination war" led by Israel.
During his stay in Abu Dhabi, Arafat met the Emirati President Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan al-Nahyan, who argued for a wider international participation alongside the US in the peace process.
Arafat left Sanaa late Sunday – SANAA (AFP)
© 2000 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
