REPORT: Arab League confirms the right of all Arab nations in arming Syrian rebels

The Arab League confirmed on Tuesday the right of all Arab nations in arming Syrian rebels and gave the opposition the Syrian seat at the summit held in the Qatari capital, Doha.   

A Syrian opposition leader, taking Syria's seat at an Arab summit for the first time, said the United States should use Patriot missiles to protect rebel-held areas from President Bashar al-Assad's airpower.                                    

Moaz Al-Khatib said he had asked US Secretary of State John Kerry for US forces to help defend rebel-controlled northern parts of Syria with Patriot surface-to-air missiles.                         

The insurgents have few weapons to counter Assad's helicopter gunships and warplanes.                

Al-Khatib said the United States should play a bigger role in helping end the two-year-old conflict in Syria, blaming Assad's government for what he called its refusal to solve the crisis.                

"I have asked Mr Kerry to extend the umbrella of the Patriot missiles to cover the Syrian north and he promised to study the subject," Al-Khatib said, referring to NATO Patriot missile batteries sent to Turkey last year to protect Turkish airspace.                        

"We are still waiting for a decision from NATO to protect people's lives, not to fight but to protect lives," he said.                                      

During the Summit, the emir of Qatar, a strong supporter of the struggle to topple Assad, asked his fellow-Arab leaders to invite the coalition delegation to represent Syria formally at the summit, despite the internal divisions plaguing the opposition.            

The Arab League suspended Syria in November 2011 in protest at its use of violence against civilians to quell dissent.                

In his speech, Qatar's Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani urged the UN Security Council to stop the "oppression and repression of the people" in Syria, halt the bloodshed and "present those responsible for these crimes against their people to international justice".              

For his part, the Arab League Chief Nabil Elaraby said that the Syrian regime is holding full responsibility of the crisis because the latter is abiding by a military solution and pointed out that the continuous shed of blood threatens the security and stability of the whole regions.                         

As for the Saudi Crown Prince Salman bin Abdul-Aziz Al Saud, he considered that the Syrian regime is corrupting any Syrian initiative to resolve the crisis politically.                 

Meanwhile, Egyptian President Mohammad Morsi called for aiding the Syrian people and supporting their representatives.              

As for King Abdullah II of Jordan, he said that the developments taking place in Syria emphasize the need of political solution.                               

For his part, Lebanese President Michel Sleiman called for an International Conference that discusses the file of the Syrian refugees in Lebanon.      
                    
The United Nations says about 70,000 people have been killed in a conflict that began with peaceful anti-Assad protests and turned into an increasingly sectarian armed insurrection.                

The war in Syria has divided world powers, paralyzing action at the Security Council. The Arab world is also split, with Saudi Arabia and Qatar the most fervent foes of Assad, and Iraq, Algeria and Lebanon the most resistant to calls for his removal.            

On another note, Qatar called for the immediate establishment of a $1 billion fund to help Palestinians in Arab East Jerusalem, and offered to contribute $250 million to it.                    

Apart from Syria, the Arab summit will also discuss stalled Israeli-Palestinian peace efforts and long-standing plans to restructure the Arab League.  
            
Separately, Egypt's Islamist president warned that he will deal "firmly" and "decisively" with any foreign attempt to meddle in the affairs of his country, mired in turmoil for most of the two years since Hosni Mubarak's ouster.                        

Mohammed Morsi said that “Egypt does not interfere in other countries' domestic affairs and expects to be treated similarly”.                             

"We don't accept anyone sticking his finger inside Egypt," he said without elaborating.           

On the sidelines of the Arab Summit, Lebanese President Michel Sleiman met with Jordanian King Abdullah II, Prince of Kuwait Sheikh Sobah al-Ahmad al-Jaber al-Sobah, Libyan interim government head; Ali Zaidan, and the Arab League Chief Nabil Elaraby.           

Talks were mainly related to the current Lebanese situation as well as Arab developments.       


REUTERS/AP/LBCI

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