31 Jan. - 6 Feb. 2002
Issue No.571
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Al-Ahram Weekly Online 31 Jan. - 6 Feb. 2002 Issue No.571 |
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Ministers coordinate anti-terrorism action
Cracking down on terrorism in the aftermath of 11 September topped the agenda of the Arab Interior Ministers' two-day conference. Ahmed Moussa reports from Beirut
In a two-day conference that started on Tuesday in the Lebanese capital, Beirut, Arab ministers of the interior highlighted the importance of Arab nations cooperating in the fight against terrorism. While backing the US war against terrorism, the ministers opposed any possibility of expanding the campaign to target an Arab state, a definition that implicitly includes Iraq.
Arab interior ministers discussing measures in the fight against terrorism
At a time when Palestinian police headquarters are being shelled on a daily basis by the Israeli army, the Arab ministers agreed to provide support to the Palestinian police corps in order to enable it to carry out its job and protect Palestinian citizens.
The conference general secretariat issued a report revealing measures taken by Arab states in their fight against terrorism. This report attempts to refute allegations that the Arab nation is the main source of terrorism and the hotbed for a new generation of terrorists.
The conference started by defining terrorism as, "all and any organised act of violence including assassinations, the holding of hostages, hijacking or any other similar act of aggression that threatens innocent civilians." Participants agreed that a distinction has to be drawn between terrorism and legitimate struggle aimed at liberating an occupied territory.
Two examples illustrating this definition are, Hizbullah, the Lebanese resistance movement which fought against Israel to liberate South Lebanon, and the Palestinians' struggle in the occupied territories.
The ministers accused Israel of using anti- terrorism rhetoric in order to achieve its expansionist goals and of distorting the image of the Arab world. The ministers added that Israel uses the banner of anti-terrorism to justify its daily inhuman practices against Palestinians, which leave scores of innocent Palestinians killed.
Arab justice and interior ministers signed in 1998 the "Arab Agreement for Combating Terrorism," which went into effect in 1999. According to this agreement, Arab countries are committed to preventing the infiltration of terrorists across their borders; the settling of terrorists in their countries; providing them with training and weapons; the financing of terrorist elements; and committed to exchanging information aimed at arresting terrorists at large, particularly those sentenced by courts in their home countries.
According to the same agreement, Arab officials responsible for combating terrorism should hold an annual conference to discuss issues related to this phenomenon and other organised crimes, as well as the best means to stop the smuggling of weapons and other materials used in acts of terrorism.
After the attacks on the US, Interior Minister Habib El-Adli stressed the importance of international cooperation in combating terrorism so as not to leave an open window for further terrorist activities.
During the conference, Arab states renewed their commitment to President Hosni Mubarak's initiative, made in the late 1980s, which calls for an international conference to combat terrorism, to be conducted under the auspices of the United Nations. The proposed conference should determine the mechanisms by which to confront this phenomenon and be precluded by a clear commitment from all countries involved, they agreed.
The interior ministers also concentrated, during their closed meetings, on reaching an agreement on the points mentioned in the agenda. These were topped by: Intensifying efforts among Arab countries to deter the dangers of terrorism, setting a date for a joint meeting with Arab information ministers in Cairo; and reaching an agreement on the extradition of criminals. The ministers also prepared a comprehensive media campaign to alert Arab citizens against the dangers of terrorism, while emphasising Muslim teachings that denounce violence in all its forms. This proposed agreement was thoroughly studied by Arab ministers of justice.
In statements to Al-Ahram Weekly, secretary- general of the Arab Interior Minster's Council, Mohamed Ali Koman said that the ministers discussed each Arab country's commitment to agree on combating terrorism. He praised the cooperation shown by Arab nations in handing over suspected terrorists and affirmed his rejection of the expansion of the current US military campaign to include an Arab country under the banner of combating terrorism.
Koman added that the 11 September attacks on the US helped activate the Arab agreement on combating terrorism, and that he explained to the ministers in his report the obstacles which faced its implementation and how to remove them.
Koman said that 18 out of 22 Arab countries have so far ratified the Arab Agreement on Terrorism and are committed to it. He further praised cooperation among Arab nations in the field of extradition of criminals and affirmed that, "We in Arab countries do not have such a huge number of terrorists as some might imagine and our countries are taking all the necessary security measures to combat crime: We do not provide a refuge for these terrorists but we chase and trace them."
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