July 28, 2006

THE CUSTODIAN OF THE TWO HOLY MOSQUES ISSUES HIS ORDERS TO SEND A FIELD HOSPITAL TO LEBANON. BUSH AND PRINCES SAUD, BANDAR, TURKI, CONDOLEEZA RICE AND HADLEY DISCUSS WAYS OF STOPPING THE ESCALATION. SAUDI ARABIA CONDEMNS THE WAR LAUNCHED BY ISRAEL AND WARNS THE INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY AGAINST THE DANGEROUS SITUATION IN THE REGION. THE SAUDI SHOURA COUNCIL CONDEMNS THE ISRAELI AGGRESSION. SAAD AL-HARIRI HARIRI REITERATES CALLS FOR AN IMMEDIATE CEASE-FIRE AND URGES NATIONAL UNITY TO ABORT ISRAELI PLANS TO SOW DIVISIONS AMONG THE LEBANESE. ANNAN WARNS FROM THE RESULTS OF A GROUND FORCES INVASION IN SOUTHERN LEBANON. Within the framework of the efforts of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to ease the sufferings of the Lebanese people who are experiencing very tragic circumstances, the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Abdullah Ibn Abdul Aziz has issued his orders to send a field hospital equipped with all necessary medical equipment to Lebanon. This has been announced by Minister of Health and Chairman of Saudi Red Crescent Society Dr. Hamad Ibn Abdullah Al-Mani'. Al-Mani' said that these directives come to reaffirm the keenness of King Abdullah to support Arab and Islamic peoples and to help them with all possible means, pointing out that the field hospital will be sent in the next few days to help the Lebanese people with medical support. On the other hand U.S. President George W. Bush received at the White House Prince Saud Al-Faisal, the Foreign Minister and Prince Bandar Ibn Sultan Ibn Abdul Aziz, the Secretary General of National Security Council. The meeting was attended by Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, Saudi Ambassador to the United States of America Prince Turki Al-Faisal and U.S. National Security Adviser Stephen Hadley. During the meeting, they discussed topics of mutual concern and the crisis arising in the Middle East as a result of Israeli aggression on Palestinian and Lebanese territories. Earlier in the day, Prince Saud Al-Faisal and Prince Bandar Ibn Sultan met with Rice and her advisers. After a meeting with US President George W. Bush in the White House yesterday, Foreign Minister Prince Saud Al-Faisal said that he handed over a message from the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah Ibn Abdul Aziz to Bush pertaining to putting a stop to the bleeding in Lebanon. As regards his talks with Bush and other US officials, Prince Saud said that he sensed the concern of President Bush to bring about a cease-fire and to halt fighting and destruction in Lebanon, hence he is sending Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice to the Middle East to discuss the situation. Prince Saud added that the current critical situation is related to Lebanon and its ability to establish its sovereignty over the whole of its territory. He also said that he did not see any objection to cease-fire in Lebanon and all the details of extending its sovereignty over the whole of its territory. Prince Saud reiterated that Saudi Arabia supported Lebanon to help it to establish its sovereignty over the whole of its territory in accordance with "Taif Treaty" and to what was agreed upon in Lebanese National Dialogue sessions before the latest events, pointing out that Saudi Arabia will participate in the conference which will be held in Italy to discuss the Lebanese crisis. Prince Saud Al-Faisal had met earlier with the Special Envoy of the UN Terje Roed-Larsen and discussed with him the latest developments in Lebanon and the importance of combining efforts to bring about cease-fire and avoid dangers that threaten security and stability of the Middle East. In New York the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has reiterated its condemnation of the war launched by Israel on Lebanon, and its intentional and frequent destruction and violation of human rights. The Kingdom also denounced targeting of innocent civilians by Israel in violation of all international conventions and humanitarian considerations. These remarks were made by the Kingdom's permanent representative at the UN Ambassador Fawzi Shubukshi at a meeting of the Security Council last night. "The Kingdom warns the international community against the existing dangerous situation in the region. It would be impossible to predict the serious repercussions caused by violence in the region in the light of the failure of the international community to take a firm stand against the Israeli aggressive policies," he said. Pointing out to the dangerous situation in Lebanon and the Palestinian territories, Shubukshi said the Israeli aggression will lead to more destruction and casualties. Shubukshi lauded the report of the UN's secretary general which called for ending the Israeli aggression and taking brave measures by the international community to resolve the Palestinian problem. He said the comprehensive war launched by Israel on Lebanon and Gaza could never be justified. "The international relations are currently facing critical circumstances due to the logic of force in defiance of the law, norms and human values', he said. He criticized the dual policies and wrong interpretations of the concept of self-defense stipulated in the UN's convention. "The international problems can never be solved through sending forces and shelling by planes and missiles, but they can be solved through the implementation of the international law and its just principles', he said, calling for giving up the policy of repressive measures, and avoiding violation of international laws and norms and human values. Shubukshi said lack of balance, a belief in Israel's so-called allegations and the failure to implement the road map and the Arab initiative have killed the peace process. He described the Israeli occupation and aggressions on the civilians as the real causes of the problem. "The Kingdom's Government condemns the war being launched by Israel, its deliberate and frequent destruction and violation of human right as well as targeting the innocent civilians in violation to the international conventions and humanitarian considerations, and warns the international community against the dangerous situation in the region', he said. He confirmed the Kingdom's support to the Lebanese government and the Palestinian national authority. Shubukshi called on the international community to shoulder its responsibility in this respect and to work for the protection of the Lebanese people and the efforts of the Lebanese government to preserve the sovereignty of Lebanon. He also urged for ending the siege imposed on the Palestinian people and extending support to the efforts of the Palestinian national authority to unify the Palestinian ranks within the framework of the national dialogue. In Riyadh the Shoura Council condemned Israel's brutal acts against the Lebanese and Palestinian peoples. In a statement released, the Shoura Council condemned Israel's brutal attacks on the Lebanese and Palestinian people and denounced the targeting of civilian infrastructure in Lebanon as a flagrant violation of international law. The council called on the world community to condemn Israeli aggressions against Lebanon and Palestine. The statement called for Israel to take the responsibility of compensating for the destruction it has caused in Lebanon. The council commended the Kingdom's efforts to bring an end to the miseries of the Lebanese and Palestinian people. The Saudi leadership has been locked in discussion with world leaders on the issue since the escalation of Israeli aggression in the region. "Crises and calamities bring communities together and unite nations. In the ongoing aggression against Palestinians and Lebanese there is no doubt about Arab and Muslim nations adopting a unified stand," the statement said. Meanwhile the extraordinary session of the Arab transitional parliament began its deliberations in Cairo. The Saudi delegation to the meeting is led by Mansour Ibn Mahmoud Abdel-Ghaffar al-Ansari, the member of the Shoura and head of the economic and financial affairs committee. The members of the transitional parliament approved the proposal of Mohammed Jassem al-Saqr , the speaker of the transitional parliament, to discuss the issue of the Israeli vicious aggression on the Lebanese and Palestinians. Ali Abdullah, the Yemeni deputy, proposed to confine the discussions of the entire session to the tragic situation in Palestine, Lebanon and Iraq. UN Secretary General Kofi Annan warned that an Israeli invasion of Lebanon would see a dramatic escalation of Hezbollah attacks and said Syria and Iran should be involved in resolving the crisis. He also lobbied on behalf of an international security force in the border region that Israel so far has refused to back as its troops mass near southern Lebanon where the Hezbollah militia is based. "I think it's going to be a serious escalation" if Israel invades southern Lebanon, Annan said on CNN television as violence that has claimed some 350 lives stretched into a 10th day. "Obviously, there is going to be heightened tensions between them and Hezbollah" should Israeli ground forces move in to Hezbollah-controlled territory, he said on CNN's "Larry King Live." Annan was quoted as saying by AFP if Israeli troops stay long-term "to establish what they have called, in the past, a security zone or a security accord, it will be a security zone for them, but for the others will be occupation and that will intensify the resistance." With the destruction of the bridges and the infrastructure it's extremely difficult to even get to the ground to assess how many people need help and how we are going to get it to them. And so, even the 500,000 could be gross underestimation. And this is a very populated country, so you can imagine what is lying ahead of us. On the other hand the UN's Jan Egeland has condemned the devastation caused by Israeli air strikes in Beirut, saying it is a violation of humanitarian law. Mr Egeland, the UN's emergency relief chief, described the destruction as "horrific" as he toured the city. He arrived hours after another Israeli strike on Beirut. Israel also hit Sidon, a port city in the south crammed with refugees, for the first time. Mr Egeland arrived in southern Beirut just hours after Israeli strikes on the Hezbollah stronghold. A visibly moved Mr Egeland expressed shock that "block after block" of buildings had been levelled. He said the "disproportionate response" by Israel was a "violation of international humanitarian law". He appealed for both sides to halt attacks and said UN supplies of humanitarian aid would begin to arrive in the next few days. "But we need safe access," he said. "So far Israel is not giving us access." Israel has said it will lift its blockade on Beirut's port to allow aid through, but with roads, bridges and trucks among Israel's targets, transporting it around the country is difficult. Top U.N. humanitarian coordinator Jan Egeland launched an appeal from the ruins of southern Lebanon to ask international donors for $149 million to immediately help Lebanon secure food, shelter, water, sanitation and healthcare for the next three months. "More supplies are on their way, but we need safe access so that we can get the aid to those who need it most," said Egeland. UN officials in New York joined with Egeland in making the international appeal for financial assistance. "From a humanitarian perspective, it is rapidly becoming totally overwhelming," said Margareta Wahlstrom, U.N. deputy coordinator for aid in New York. Approximately 800,000 people are affected by the conflict, many of whom are now refugees scattered throughout Lebanon, Syria and neighbouring countries. The U.N. Security Council turned its focus to a dire humanitarian crisis in Lebanon on Friday as Secretary-General Kofi Annan's plea for a quick end to the fighting between Israel and Hezbollah failed to gain traction. Council members came under fire from dozens of world governments during an all-day public meeting for the apparent indecision shown by the 15-nation U.N. body. A defensive U.S. Ambassador John Bolton told reporters the council should not speak "just for the sake of speaking." It was important "that we find something that we can come together on, to show that the council is united," he added. Asked if it could come together on a humanitarian resolution that left a political agreement for later, he said, "I think the United States is prepared to pursue something very vigorously on the humanitarian front." Ambassador Jean-Marc de la Sabliere of France, the council president for July, agreed it should focus for now on the humanitarian situation Vijay Nambiar, head of a three-man U.N. team dispatched by Annan to the Middle East last weekend, said it was clear from talks with Israeli and Lebanese leaders that the time was not ripe for a formal ceasefire agreement anytime soon. In the absence of a ceasefire deal, a quick end to the fighting would open the door to longer-term diplomatic efforts while reducing civilian casualties and helping relief workers reach people in need of food, medicines and other urgent aid, Nambiar told the council. Israeli U.N. Ambassador Dan Gillerman told the council his government would ease humanitarian access to Lebanon so relief agencies could deliver food, medicine and other emergency supplies to those driven from their homes by Israeli bombing. "In spite of the very difficult situation on the ground, Israel is acutely aware of the humanitarian situation," he said. "I have just received official confirmation from Israel that ... a two-way in-and-out humanitarian corridor to meet the needs of those affected on the Lebanese side has been established." U.N. Emergency Relief Coordinator Jan Egeland said he had formally asked the Israeli and Lebanese governments a day earlier to guarantee safe passage routes by land, air and sea into and out of Lebanon. More than 500,000 people, over a third of them children, had been touched in Lebanon by the conflict and more than 100,000 Lebanese were now in Syria, most of whom needed assistance, Egeland told the council. In Cairo Foreign Minster Ahmed Abul-Gheit held intensive talks yesterday 22/7/2006 with French Foreign Minister Douste-Blazy, German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier about the deteriorating condition in Lebanon. The Foreign Ministry witnessed two joint press conferences between Abul-Gheit and the two guests in which Abul-Gheit confirmed Egypt's insistence on the urgent cease fire to put an end to the current status. Abul-Gheit also added Egypt's refusal of demolishing the Lebanese infrastructure saying that "We can not imaging the continuous firing of missiles over the Israeli cities". "Whatever the main cause of this crisis is, but we all witnessing the destruction of an Arab state, killing its people, a matter that is totally abandoned and must be stopped through the cease fire and switching the military actions off" Abul-Gheit said. Abul-Gheit showed that the Egyptian-French parties agreed on reflecting procedures of achieving stability on a reciprocal moves represented in many ways such as; moving the Lebanese army to the south or expanding the peace-keeping troop now existing in the Lebanese-Israeli borders. Nevertheless, tackling the matter of borders, captives, and implementing 1559 resolution. Abul-Gheit confirmed the Lebanese sovereignty on its territories. On the other hand, Abul-Gheit commented on what Condoleezza Rice, the US Foreign Secretary of State had iterated about the new Mideast saying; "let's control the condition, stop fire then see how the matters develop". Answering questions by diplomatic editors, Abul-Gheit said that ceasing fire is essential, for Lebanon had been shocked. Lebanon's Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri said Hezbollah was ready for the Lebanese government to negotiate on its behalf through a third party for an exchange of prisoners with Israel. On the other hand Head of the Future bloc in Parliament MP Saad Hariri hailed France's efforts aimed at securing a humanitarian corridor to deliver medical and food supplies to Israeli-besieged Lebanon following talks with French President Jacques Chirac in Paris. MP Hariri also reiterated calls for an immediate cease-fire to spare civilian lives and urged national unity to abort Israeli plans to sow divisions among the Lebanese. After meeting President Chirac at the Elysee Palace, head of the Future bloc told reporters that France is exerting major diplomatic efforts to stop Israel's offensive, but Israel remains intransigent. He stressed that serious efforts are underway to resolve Lebanon's problems, including stopping the current offensive, and tackling the issue of the occupied Shebaa Farms and Lebanese and other detainees held in Israel. In response to a question on whether the government is capable of implementing international calls to be handed the two Israeli soldiers who were captured by Hezbollah, MP Hariri made clear that the government represents all Lebanese parties, and can be handed the soldiers. He added, the top priority is for an immediate cease-fire to stop Israeli massacres. Head of the Future bloc also told reporters that the Lebanese are suffering from a conflict to which they are not a party, and called for a comprehensive peace and a final settlement to salvage Lebanon. However, he pointed out that while Hezbollah kidnapped the two Israeli soldiers, the international community has been unable to stop Israel's "barbaric" offensive. In response to a question on whether contacts are continuing with Hezbollah, head of the Future bloc said they have become more 'difficult.' He also warned against Israeli plots to divide the country through its offensive. Asked about expectations of a cease-fire in light of the upcoming visit of US Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice to the region, MP Hariri said there are serious efforts to stop the fighting, but Israel is an 'intransigent enemy,' adding Lebanon should also continue to work with France and other friendly and Arab countries to broker a cease-fire.