Much of the Islamic world will unite to demand international protection for the Palestinians and Mr Yasser Arafat when Muslim foreign ministers meet in Quatar today.
The demand tops a draft statement under discussion for the meeting of foreign ministers of the Organisation of the Islamic Conference (OIC), which Mr Arafat called.
Mr Arafat is seeking "the dispatch of an international force" to the Palestinian territories, a Doha-based diplomat from one of the OIC member states said. However, the deployment of such a force has been ruled out by Israel and Washington.
However, Mr Arafat will not attend the session due to open at lunchtime amid strict security in Doha, the capital of Qatar, the current OIC chair.
"President Arafat will not take part in the Doha conference because he must stay with his people to confront the Israeli aggression," Palestinian negotiator Mr Saeb Erakat said.
Meanwhile, two Palestinians have been charged in connection with the murder of Israeli Tourism Minister Rehavam Zeevi last October.
Mr Mohammed Rimawi, from Beit Rima, is charged with murder, while Mr Saleh Alawi, from east Jerusalem, is charged as an accomplice.
Two other men are wanted in connection with the killing with officials naming a member of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), who committed the murder.
Talks ran late into the night over the draft statement, which urges "a halt to Israeli aggressions against Palestinians, the end of settlement and the implementation of the Mitchell report and Tenet plan" to restart dialogue between the warring parties, according to a source.
Former US senator Mr George Mitchell has called for confidence-building measures after a halt to violence as a means of resuming talks.
"Occupation is the cause of terrorism," said PLO political chief Mr Faruq Kaddumi, adding that Israeli Prime Minister Mr Ariel Sharon's policy of "assassinations and destruction" fed the violence.
Syrian Foreign Minister Mr Faruq al-Shara denounced US support for Israel as "terrorism" against the Palestinian people.
Algerian Foreign Minister Mr Abdel Aziz Bel-Khadem warned that the United States has interests in the Arab world and noted "a change in the West in favour of a Palestinian state . . . which must be made concrete".
But the wishes of some mainly Arab countries not to criticise the US, which has backed Israel's right to self-defence against the Palestinians, led to the cancellation of an Arab League emergency meeting set for Sunday in Doha on the sidelines of the 57-member OIC, participants said.
AFP