In the wake of last week's attacks on Sharm El-Sheikh, the Red Sea resort bravely busies itself with preparations for hosting this week's Arab summit, writes Dina Ezzat President Hosni Mubarak receives Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas who is expected to arrive in the Red Sea resort to discuss Egyptian support for Palestinians ahead of the Israeli withdrawal from Gaza scheduled for mid-August. Mubarak and Abbas are also expected to review preparations for the extraordinary Arab summit that President Mubarak plans to host on Wednesday in Sharm El-Sheikh. On Thursday, President Mubarak called for an emergency Arab summit to discuss the volatile political situation in the Arab world which he said is passing through "a critical phase" and is facing "worrisome developments", especially in Palestine and Iraq. "There exists now an urgent need to formulate a common Arab vision with regards to these developments and their ramifications," Mubarak said. He added that in view of his consultations with other Arab leaders and Arab LeagueSecretary General Amr Moussa he had decided to convene an Arab summit in Sharm El-Sheikh on Wednesday 3 August. The Arab summit will be preceded by a meeting of Arab foreign ministers to pave the resolutions to be adopted by the leaders. The ministerial meeting, scheduled for Tuesday, is to be preceded by a preparatory ministerial and high-officials meeting on Monday. This evening, Moussa will convene a meeting with the permanent representatives of the 22 member states of the regional organisation to discuss details of the extraordinary Arab summit. So far 12 Arab countries have publicly declared their willingness to take part in the summit, including Lebanon, Yemen and Jordan. Foreign Ministry and Arab League sources say that along with these three countries, and Algeria, the current Arab League chair, Egypt and the secretariat of the pan-Arab body have received the consent of eight other Arab states -- Saudi Arabia, Syria, Sudan, Yemen, Kuwait, Iraq, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates. The quorum necessary for the convocation of the summit is 15 member states. Libya somewhat reluctant to attend the Sharm El-Sheikh summit, wants instead to convene a special summit to discuss the Libyan leader Muammar Qaddafi's views on Arab League. He has received little enthusiasm from other Arab leaders. President Mubarak delegated his chief intelligence Omar Suliman to urge Qaddafi to participate. Other countries have also subtly expressed reservations about convening the Sharm El-Sheikh summit because they believe there will be little opportunity for concrete action. They feel that the annual March Arab summit has already adopted enough resolutions on the Palestinian and Iraqi files. "It is very important that the summit convenes now to offer support to our brothers in Iraq and Palestine," Arab League Secretary-General Amr Moussa told reporters on Thursday. Moussa said that it would be a big mistake for the Arab world to turn a blind eye to the aggressive Israeli plans to "gobble up" occupied Palestinian territories. Arab League sources say that the Sharm El-Sheikh extraordinary summit will focus on three items: international terrorism, developments in the Palestinian territories and the situation in Iraq. The Arab summit is expected to adopt a special statement denouncing terrorism and to call for collective Arab and international action against international terrorism. The statement will re-emphasise the collective Arab view that Palestinian resistance to Israeli occupation does not qualify as terrorism -- but it will stipulate that innocent civilians, Israeli or otherwise, should not be subject to terrorism. Arab leaders are expected to adopt measures compatible with the wish of the Iraqi government and the Palestinian Authority. The summit is expected to stress the predominant Arab character of Iraq and to call for the territorial unity of all Iraqis: Sunnis, Shias, Kurds and others. The summit will stress the commitment of Iraq's neighbours to increase security measures aimed at preventing the infiltration of arms or individuals to Iraqi fighters. The summit is to offer support for the Iraqi people's ongoing efforts in drafting a new constitution. It is not yet clear how the summit will deal with the issue of Arab diplomatic representation in Iraq in view of the consecutive killings of the head of the Egyptian diplomatic mission and two Algerian diplomats in Baghdad. The summit is also expected to offer support for the Palestinian Authority in the phase following the planned Israeli withdrawal from Gaza and to insist on the implementation of the Road Map. Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon has insisted that the Gaza withdrawal will not necessarily be followed by other withdrawals. In a recent interview with the French daily Le Figaro, conducted during Sharon's visit to Paris last week, the Israeli premier said that the withdrawal "may -- and I repeat may -- lead to the Road Map only if Palestinians undertook necessary measures to combat terror." Arab commentators and public opinion have virtually ignored the Sharm El-Sheikh summit. For the intellectuals and public alike the question is: Can yet another summit deliver? "In all honesty one has to admit that Arab summits do not live up to the expectations of Arab people," said Hesham Youssef, Chief of the Cabinet of the Secretary General of the Arab League. Youssef admitted that this is in part due "to the overall weakness of the Arab world". He said that "tough challenges should not be met with defeatism. Such a defeatist attitude is the last thing the Arab world now needs."
