ISRAEL: The Arab summit threatened to collapse in chaos yesterday after two key leaders absented themselves and the Palestinian delegation walked out in a dispute over protocol. The United Arab Emirates reduced the level of its representation when the summit seemed "incapable of fulfilling the aspirations of the Arab world".
An atmosphere of doom descended in the mid-afternoon when it emerged that the Saudi Minister of Interior, Prince Nawaf, the second man on the delegation, had been taken to hospital.
It was reported that the Egyptian President, Mr Hosni Mubarak, did not attend in protest at Israel's refusal to allow the Palestinian President, Mr Yasser Arafat, to participate. But informed sources said that Mr Mubarak was peeved because Saudi Arabia had ousted Egypt from the leadership position in the Arab world by issuing the new peace plan.
The reason given for the non-appearance of Jordan's King Abdullah was "ill health" but this convinced few delegates. Since Jordan and Egypt are the only two Arab countries that have peace treaties with the Jewish state, the suspicion is that they do not want to risk a break in relations with Israel if the Israelis refuse to take up the Saudi peace offer.
A wrangle between the Palestinian delegation and the Lebanese erupted when Mr Arafat was not given primacy of place on the list of speakers for his telecast from the West Bank where he has been confined by Israel. He also wanted to deliver his address live but the organisers insisted on a recording. The row deepened when the speech was broadcast by several Arabic television stations. The dispute was resolved late last night when the Palestinians agreed to return.
The keynote address was delivered by Saudi Crown Prince Abdullah who proposed that the summit adopt an initiative which would offer Israel "normal relations" in exchange for a "full Israeli withdrawal" from Arab territories occupied in 1967, "recognition of an independent Palestinian state with noble Jerusalem as its capital and the return of the Palestinian refugees".
In an historic appeal to the Israeli people, he said that if their government gives up "the policy of force and suppression and accepts peace, we will not hesitate to accept the Israeli people's right to live in security with the rest of the region".
The Jordanian Prime Minister, Mr Ali Abu Ragheb, who read the speech of his absent monarch, said: "The initiative sends a clear message to the whole world that the Arabs want peace, that they are working to achieve it for all peoples of the region, and that Israel is putting obstacles in its way."
As expected, the Syrian President, Dr Bashar al-Assad, called on the Arab states that have ties with Israel to sever relations if the Jewish state opposes the initiative. A seven-nation committee was appointed to draft a final version of the Saudi document.
In spite of their differences, one by one, the Arab leaders endorsed the proposal. The Lebanese Minister of Culture, Mr Ghassan Salameh, predicted yesterday afternoon that "unity" would be preserved.