Excerpt
Click here to see the full document 
 13/ 09/ 2002

THE ARAB STATES UNANIMOUSLY ANNOUNCE THEIR REJECTION OF ANY
STRIKE AGAINST IRAQ. THE ARAB FOREIGN MINISTERS: 

THE THREAT OF AGGRESSION ON IRAQ AND ANY THREAT POSED AGAINST THE SECURITY AND INTEGRITY OF ANY ARAB COUNTRY WILL BE CONSIDERED AS A THREAT AGAINST ARAB NATIONAL SECURITY.


     (...) The Arab Foreign Ministers unanimously announced their categorical rejection of any
  threat of attack against Iraq and called upon Baghdad to pursue its dialogue with the
  United Nations. 

  Arab League Secretary-General Amr Moussa said that attacking Iraq will lead to
  severe consequences in the Middle East, but added that the Arabs want Iraq to
  readmit UN inspectors to avoid the dangers of the current crisis. 

  ''We will continue to work to avoid a military confrontation... because we believe that it
  will open the gates of hell in the Middle East which is already angry and frustrated at
  Israel's actions against the Palestinians during their nearly two-year conflict,'' Moussa
  told a news conference after the two-day meeting of the Arab Foreign Ministers which
  was held in the Arab League Headquarters in Cairo. 

  He said Arab countries instead backed the return of UN arms inspectors to Iraq as
  part of a deal between Baghdad and the United Nations, and urged Iraq to allow UN
  weapons inspections to resume in a bid to head off the US attack, but he warned, "No
  Arab country will accept any strike on any other Arab country.'' 

  Moussa said that discussions among Foreign Ministers confirmed that all Arab
  countries are opposed to taking any part in the US strike on Iraq regardless OF any
  pressure that might be exerted on them. 

  The Secretary General said that there are major challenges facing the Arab region
  whether in Palestine, Iraq and Sudan, noted that they affect the heart of the Arab
  National Security and the essence of the social and political Arab development. 

  Moussa stressed on the presence of clear indications over an Arab disability to
  confront such challenges, reflected in ethnic violations against Arabs accusing them of
  anti-Semitism, the continuous Israeli aggression against the Palestinian people and
  the threats of a possible strike on Iraq. 

  In their final communiqué, the 22 Arab states expressed their ''deliberate rejection of
  any threat of aggression against some Arab countries and Iraq in particular.'' They
  also ''stressed that these threats and any threat posed against the security and
  integrity of any Arab country will be considered as a threat against the Arab national
  security.'' 

  The Arab states called for lifting 12 years of UN sanctions imposed on Iraq and
  ensuring Iraq remains one country, and ending the sufferings of the Iraqi people in a
  way that insure stability and security in the region. 

  They also called for respecting Iraq's independence, sovereignty, security and
  integrity, and stopping all acts of interference in its internal affairs. 

  The Arab League Council welcomed in its resolution Iraq's initiatives to consolidate
  dialogue with the United Nations and urged for continuing such dialogue to reach a
  comprehensive settlement between them that guarantees an implementation of all
  security council resolutions. 

  It asked the Arab League Secretary General to hold contacts with the Security Council
  and the UN Secretary General and urge them to fulfil their legal responsibilities
  according to the United Nations Charter and avert any attack. (...)