The Islamic summit which opens in Qatar on Sunday will be "still-born", a leading Iraqi daily said, predicting that no concrete measures against Israel will be implemented.
Babel newspaper, run by President Saddam Hussein's eldest son Uday, said: "Despite all the attempts of the Qatari government to give some importance to the summit, it seems the results will be scarcely better than those of the Arab summit, which discouraged the Arabs."
Arab leaders in their October meeting in Cairo threatened to break off relations with Israel but took no firm decisions.
Babel noted that Qatar had "refused to devote the summit exclusively to the only overriding question, which interests Muslims: the Palestinian territories," and the continuation of the Intifada, or uprising.
"It seems the summit participants do not intend to reach agreement and this will turn the discussions into worthless gossip," the daily said.
"This conference will end, like those, which have preceded it, with resolutions lacking real content.
The government newspaper al-Jumhuriya called on the summit to "adopt a decisive resolution committing all Muslims to wage jihad (holy war) against the Zionists until the Palestinian territories are liberated."
The daily told Arabs and Muslims "to unite their ranks and stand up strongly against the lies about Islam and its noble values spread by the US-Zionist assassins."
Foreign ministers preparing for the summit in Doha have drawn up a draft declaration urging the 56 members of the Organization of the Islamic Conference to break all ties with Israel – BAGHDAD (AFP)
© 2000 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
