Sana'a, Yemen - Arab League Secretary General Amr Moussa
paid a brief visit to Sana'a on Saturday in the first leg of a tour
aimed at healing the rifts among Arab states exposed by the Israeli
offensive in the Gaza Strip.
Moussa held talks with Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh on
'efforts to achieve inter-Arab reconciliation and solidarity,'
Yemen's state news agency Saba reported.
In remarks to reporters following the brief meeting, Moussa warned
that 'the Arab world is going through a dangerous situation and the
current Arab split affects every aspect.'
Arab countries were mired in deep rifts last month over how to
deal with the Israeli attacks on the Gaza Strip, with some nations
calling for tough action but others opting for a more moderate
approach.
The split was highlighted after Egypt and Saudi Arabia stayed away
from an emergency summit called by Qatar. The summit did not get the
quorum of two-thirds of Arab League member states required for a
formal Arab summit.
'We have to contain this situation, and we will work to reach this
target in the coming annual summit (in Doha),' Moussa said. The
summit is due for the end of March.
He said the gaps were 'getting larger,' adding that efforts were
going on by Arab leaders to fill those gaps.
'We hope those efforts would achieve good results,' Moussa said.
He said the division among Arab countries 'leads to widening the
inter-Palestinian split and could affect chances for solving the
Palestinian cause.'
In remarks to reporters on his departure, Moussa said that his
tour was in response to the call made by Saudi King Abdullah last
month for Arab unity and solidarity.
'This tour is intended to discuss ways of revive the Arab
solidarity in light of the call made by Custodian of the Two Holy
Mosques King Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz during the Kuwait summit last
month,' Moussa said.
At the Kuwait summit, King Abdullah had urged Arab leaders to open
a new era of Arab unity and solidarity.
After the several-hour visit, Moussa left Sana'a for Amman, after
which he will visit Doha and Riyadh, Yemeni officials said.
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