Lebanon, as chair of the Arab summit in Beirut, has condemned Israel's "barbarous war" against the Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat and called on the United Nations, the United States, Russia and the European Union to intervene to halt it.
"Only hours after the Arab peace initiative was adopted at the Beirut summit, Israel responded with a barbarous war and an arrogant savage aggression", a Lebanese foreign ministry statement said.
"What Israel is doing confirms again that it is a terrorist state which rejects peace," the statement added, following Israel's occupation of the city of Ramallah where Arafat has his West Bank headquarters.
"The presidency of the Arab summit denounces in the strongest manner this arrogant aggression and calls on the UN Security Council, the United States, the Russian Federation and the European Union and all those who back the Arab peace initiative to act immediately to deter Israel and its aggression."
It called on them to "put an end to (Israel's) criminal policy that violates international law and which threatens security and stability in this region."
AFP