Arab foreign ministers postpone Syria meet

CAIRO: Arab foreign ministers postponed a planned meeting on the Syrian conflict that had been due to take place in Saudi Arabia later on Sunday, a top Arab League official said.Deputy Arab League chief Ahmed Ben Helli told Reuters the meeting was delayed because of the minor operation undergone by Saudi Arabian Foreign Minister Prince Saud Al-Faisal.

The royal court said on Saturday that he had undergone a successful operation to relieve an intestinal obstruction.

Ben Helli said the Arab ministers, who had been due to meet in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, would set a new date to gather.

The Arab ministers meeting was to have been held before Muslim leaders meet in Makkah on Tuesday for an Organization of Islamic Cooperation summit.

On Saturday, Ben Helli said an extraordinary meeting would discuss the “latest developments in Syria and what policy action to take” after Annan’s announcement on August 2 that he was stepping down.
They were also to discuss a successor for the former UN chief, he added.
Diplomats at the United Nations have tipped veteran Algerian diplomat, Lakhdar Brahimi, a former top League official, as the new envoy and France’s ambassador Araud said Friday that a replacement could be named early next week.
But in a statement released on Friday, Brahimi made no mention of the speculation about his nomination, limiting himself to calling for an end to the bitter divisions on the UN Security Council over the Syrian conflict which Annan cited in his resignation announcement.
“The UN Security Council and regional states must unite to ensure that a political transition can take place as soon as possible,” the 78-year-old said.
“Millions of Syrians are clamoring for peace. World leaders cannot remain divided any longer, over and above their cries.”