Arab League Envoys Set First Visit to Postwar Iraq

Author: 
Agence France Presse
Publication Date: 
Thu, 2003-11-06 03:00

CAIRO, 6 November 2003 — The Arab League will send a high-level delegation to Iraq next week for the first time since the war to topple Saddam Hussein was launched in March, the organization said yesterday.

The head of Arab relations at the 22-member league, Ali Al-Jarush, said the delegation was tasked with “meeting members of the interim governing council as well as party and tribal officials and religious dignitaries.”

These envoys will try to “listen to the views of these public figures and learn about their needs,” so that the league “has a clear vision of the situation in Iraq,” said Jarush.

Arab League Secretary-General Amr Mussa had decided to send the delegation “to respond to the will of several leaders of Iraqi political forces,” Jarush added.

On Sept. 10, the Arab League agreed to admit the governing council as a temporary league member pending the formation of a legitimate government.

Meanwhile, Mussa met Iraqi public figures who are opposed to the British-US occupation of Iraq, including Mazhar Al-Dulaymi, who says he gathers delegates from tribes and parties not represented in the governing council.

It also includes Sherif Ali ibn Hussein, who lays claim to the thrown of Iraq which was abolished in a 1958 coup.

Main category: 
Old Categories: