Arab States Considering Measures To Curb Israeli Siege
By Tareq Ayyoub
AMMAN, March 14 (IslamOnline) - Jordanian Information Minister Taleb Rifai on Wednesday described situation in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip as "very dangerous" adding that some Arab states are considering measures to end the Israeli siege on the Palestinian territories.
Day by day, the situation in Palestine is worsening, and there has been no improvement in condition of the Palestinian people who are subjected to the violence there, the minister said.
"There are some measures Egypt, Jordan and the Palestinians are considering to force Israel to get abandon its current policies against the Palestinians."
Rifai urged the international community to intervene to protect the Palestinian people by dispatching observers and an "international force" to the self-rule areas.
The minister, who was speaking to reporters during his weekly media briefing, said the trilateral meeting between Palestinian, Jordanian and Egyptian officials this week in Cairo was aimed at coordinating efforts to assist the Palestinians.
He said Arab foreign ministers agreed to channel $40 million every month to the Palestinian National Authority.
The election of hardliner Ariel Sharon as Israel's new premier drew pessimism among Arabs concerning his ability and willingness to resume the stalled peace process and end the bloodshed, sparked by his controversial visit in late September to al-Haram al-Sharif (the al-Aqsa mosque compound) in occupied Jerusalem.
The incident led to start of the current ongoing Palestinian Intifada, or uprising, and the subsequent deaths of over 400 people due to the violence that followed.
The 77-year-old Sharon has adopted a policy aimed at breaking the Palestinian territories into 45 cantons and toughening the economic siege.
Rifai said he had no information about a report by the Israeli media that Sharon had sent an Israeli envoy to Jordan.
Israeli radio reported that Sharon was planning to dispatch Mjali Wahbeh, an Israeli Arab businessman, to meet with some Arab leaders, including those in Egypt and Jordan.
