11.   The meeting, which had been requested by the Arab states, was addressed by Yassir Arafat, the leader of the PLO.

12.   Yassir Arafat, the PLO Chairman, called upon the Arab states to impose economic sanctions on countries and companies involved in the transfer of Jews to Arab lands.

13.   The Arab states also affirmed their total adherence to defending and protecting Jordanian national security.

14.   He said that the PLO would call on all Arab states to implement economic sanctions against the USA.

15.   Some Western reports claimed that Iraqi troops had been told that they were invading Israel and were deeply distressed when they found themselves in another Arab state.

16.   Some individual Arab states had already issued condemnations of the invasion.

17.   The Cairo meeting was boycotted by the pro-Iraqi Arab bloc, whose leaders were pursuing peace efforts largely dismissed by the West and other Arab states.

18.   The Israeli reaction contrasted sharply with the widespread international condemnation of the shootings, especially from Arab states.

19.   Membership was open to all Arab states including Palestine, which was considered to be an independent state.

20.   The regional realignment during the Gulf war, he contended, had meant Arab states and Israel standing together against a common aggressor, Iraq.