ARAB AFAIRS - Sep 16 - Saudi Says Israel Should Yield More Land.

Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Sultan says Israel should withdraw from more conquered Arab lands after Gaza, indicating there can be no change in the collective Arab stand on Israel unless occupation ends. In an interview with The AP, Sultan said Arabs have reiterated their commitment to a just and lasting peace through the Arab peace plan, which Saudi Arabia initiated and Arab leaders adopted in 2002. Sultan said: We have followed the Israeli withdrawal from Gaza very closely. This withdrawal should be followed by further withdrawals from the Palestinian and Arab occupied territories since 1967, and lead to the realization of an independent Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital". Saudi Arabia's position on the 57-year-old Arab-Israeli conflict is significant for Israel to be accepted by Arab states and the Islamic world. The oil-rich kingdom is the Arab world's economic powerhouse and is home to Islam's two holiest shrines. Islam's third-holiest shrine, the Al Aqsa Mosque compound, is in the old city of Jerusalem, which Israel captured from Jordan in 1967. The Saudi crown prince's reiteration of the kingdom's position was in contrast with that of Qatar, Saudi Arabia's neighbour. The two Arab countries are partners in the regional alliance GCC but have sparred on some issues. The Qatari FM, Shaikh Hamad bin Jassim bin Jabor Al Thani, took the initiative among the Arabs after Israel completed its withdrawal from Gaza. On Sep 14, the Qatari saluted Israel for leaving Gaza and said Arab nations must respond with their own overtures. The next day, he held a rare public meeting with Israeli FM Silvan Shalom at the UN and said it was possible to establish full diplomatic relations with Israel before the formation of an independent Palestinian state. The two countries have had low-level contacts for years. There are concerns among Palestinians and other Arabs that Israel intended to consolidate its control over most of the West Bank and east Jerusalem after the Gaza pullout. King Abdullah, who was Saudi Arabia's crown prince then, proposed a peace plan that was adopted by an Arab summit in Beirut, Lebanon, in 2002. The plan calls for a full Israeli withdrawal from Gaza, the West Bank and traditionally Arab east Jerusalem, which would all be part of an independent Palestinian state. The Arabs also demand Israel give up the Golan Heights, which it captured from Syria. In return for Israel surrendering the territory captured in the 1967 Middle East war, Arab states have said they will offer the Jewish state normal relations and peace. But the Israelis, mindful of security needs and established Jewish settlements, have no plans to withdraw from all of the West Bank. And they have rejected Palestinian demands to share Jerusalem. The Saudi crown prince made his remarks in writing in English and in Arabic after meeting with AP reporters. During the meeting itself, the crown prince dismissed as a "wrong idea" that there was discrimination against women in Saudi Arabia. "We are fighting for women's rights", he told the AP, adding that under Islam women should be respected. Women in Saudi Arabia have limited freedoms. Without written permission from a male guardian, they may not travel, get an education or work. Regardless of permissions, they are not allowed to drive, mix with men in public or leave home without covering themselves with black cloaks, called abayas. However, in a small but unprecedented step in Saudi Arabia this week, the government has ordered women to be allowed to vote and run as candidates in a local chamber of commerce election. It would be the first time women will be allowed to fully participate in an election in this ultraconservative Islamic kingdom. On the issue of UN reform, the crown prince expressed support in his written remarks for reforming the Security Council, expanding its membership and improving its effectiveness to be able to preserve international peace and security. On Iraq, Saudi Arabia's northern neighbour, Sultan expressed hope that the country will be able to overcome its differences. He stressed Iraq's links to the Arab world, ties which Iraq's minority Sunni Arabs have sought. Sunni Muslims dominate in the Islamic world, including Saudi Arabia. "The most important thing is Iraq's unity and Arab identity, as well as the preservation of its sovereignty, stability and territorial integrity and guaranteed rights for all Iraqis, regardless of sect or political affiliation", he said. There are concerns among Arabs that a US-backed Iraq might be breaking away from the rest of the Arab world and that continued violence and political disputes could lead to civil war and the breakup of the country.