SHARM EL-SHEIKH, March 1 (IslamOnline.net & News Agencies) – The United Arab Emirates issued an appeal at the Arab summit in this Egyptian Red Sea resort Saturday, March 1, for Iraqi President Saddam Hussein to resign and put Iraq under the tutelage of the Arab League and the United Nations, a source close to the UAE delegation said.

The text of the initiative calls on "the Iraqi leadership to quit power and leave Iraq, within a two-week time limit after it accepts this initiative."

It provides for "judicial guarantees, binding on both international and national levels, to be given to the Iraqi leadership to make sure that it won't be prosecuted," and "a general and total amnesty be issued for all Iraqis, inside or abroad," Agence France Presse (AFP) reported.

It also requests that "the Arab League be tasked, in cooperation with the U.N. secretary general, of administrating the situation in Iraq for a temporary period, during which measures shall be undertaken to ensure a return to a normal situation satisfying the will of the Iraqi people."

"Due Consideration"

For his part, Saudi Foreign Minister Saud al-Faisal confirmed to reporters that UAE President Sheikh Zayed Ben Sultan al-Nahyan had sent the proposal via the UAE delegation.

He said no one had yet commented on the proposal, but that "it will be given due consideration."

"We are sure that nothing will be proposed by the UAE that would not be in the Arab interest," Prince Saud said, , a point considered by some analyst as an implicit approval of the plan which the Saudi official insisted on calling it an idea not an initiative.

The proposal comes as U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell resurrected the idea that war could be avoided if Saddam stepped down and urged Arab leaders to encourage such a move at their summit.

However, Saddam has already rejected the idea, telling star U.S. television presenter Dan Rather earlier this week he would die in Iraq rather than seek exile.

Before the UAE proposal was unveiled, Arab leaders who spoke at the opening session of the summit issued calls for the peaceful disarmament of Iraq.

"Sufficient time should be allowed for Iraq to show its seriousness to implement resolutions" on disarmament taken by the U.N. Security Council, Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak said in his speech.

War "would have dangerous consequences," he added, addressing the meeting attended by 10 heads of state and the de facto ruler of Saudi Arabia, and chaired by Bahraini King Hamad Bin Issa Al-Khalifa.

Earlier Saturday, an Iraqi official in Baghdad said the destruction of Al-Samoud 2 missiles had begun in compliance with UN demand.

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad called on Arab states not to provide facilities to the United States to wage war.

Their foreign ministers drafted overnight a compromise text that seems to satisfy both Iraq and the Gulf Arab states, such as Kuwait, Qatar and Bahrain, which are hosting the U.S.-led military buildup in the region, they said.

The draft calls on "Iraq's neighbors to abstain from joining any military action against the country, its security and territorial integrity," and "absolutely reject a war against Iraq."

Iraq is represented by its number two, Ezzat Ibrahim, as Saddam Hussein has not traveled abroad since Iraq's 1990 invasion of Kuwait.

On Thursday, Powell said he would encourage the Arab leaders to "issue the strongest possible statement to Saddam Hussein that he must comply (with U.N. disarmament terms) ... or suggest to him that perhaps to avoid what might flow in terms of serious consequences, it might be in his best interests to step down."

In response, Iraq's Foreign Minister Naji Sabri said "the one who should step down is the one endangering his own nation and the whole world ... dictator Bush himself."

Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Maher said that "it's not up to the Arab League to appoint Arab leaders," while his Bahraini counterpart said "I don't think it's on the agenda."

And although Kuwaiti Deputy Foreign Minister Mohammed al-Sabah renewed charges that Iraq was threatening the emirate's security, he stopped short of calling for the resignation of the man who ordered his army to invade Kuwait 12 years ago.

A diplomat said Washington's allies do think nevertheless that Saddam's resignation would suit everyone and preempt war, but others, including Syria, Lebanon, Tunisia and Libya fear that it would set a precedent allowing Washington to demand the resignation of other Arab leaders in the future.