Qatar's Emir on Monday hosted a reconciliatory summit between Libyan leader Moamer Gaddafi and Saudi King Abdullah following a Libyan tirade which overshadowed the first day of the Arab summit, a Libyan official said. "The misunderstanding between Saudi Arabia and Libya has been ended during this summit," Libyan senior official Ahmad Kadaf al-Dam was quoted as saying by AFP.
Earlier, the Libyan leader walked out of the opening session of the 21st summit of the Arab League in Doha Monday, after the Qatari host Emir Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani refused to allow him to make comments towards the Saudi king. Shortly after Gaddafi stormed out the room, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad also left the venue, trying to change the Libyan's decision.
According to press reports, Gaddafi interrupted Sheikh Hamad's opening speech in order to tell king Abdullah to forget past disputes. The relations between the two countries has deteriorated since 2004 when Saudi Arabian and U.S. authorities declared an alleged plot by Gadhafi to assassinate the then Crown Prince Abdullah. Libya said the allegations were false.
"It has been six years since you have been avoiding a confrontation with me," Gaddafi stated. "You are always lying and you're facing the grave and you were made by Britain and protected by the United States," Gaddafi told Abdullah in front of 15 other leaders attending the annual gathering.
"I am the leader of the Arab leaders, the king of kings of Africa and the imam of the Muslims," proclaimed Gaddafi. He also told Abdullah: "I am ready to visit you and for you to visit me."
Libyan state television aired excerpts of Gaddafi's diatribe, and the official JANA news agency published the full text of his words. "I tell my brother Abdullah, that you have avoided me for six years and you are afraid to confront me," Gaddafi said. "I want to reassure you: there is no need to be afraid.
"I tell you that after six years, it has been proven whose past is a pack of lies and who is facing death," he said. "You are a product of Great Britain and protected by the United States," Gaddafi said. "Out of respect for the (Arab) nation, I consider the personal problem between us over and I am ready to visit you and to welcome you" to Libya, Gaddafi added.
