Jordan's King Abdullah Stresses Palestinians' Right To Statehood

11/05/2001| IslamWeb

LONDON (Islamweb & News Agencies) - King Abdullah of Jordan threw his weight Thursday behind Washington's military campaign in Afghanistan, saying it must be waged cautiously but with ``unflinching resolve.''Speaking for what he said was the ``too-rarely-heard Arab majority'' Abdullah said the Sept. 11 suicide hijackings in the United States were an affront to all humanity and called for effective international steps against terrorism.
``This means, as you know, a different kind of war. There is a military dimension, which must be exercised with caution, but always with unflinching resolve,'' he told parliamentarians on a state visit to Britain.
The Jordanian leader, who succeeded his late father King Hussein two years ago, called for urgent efforts to reach a comprehensive Israeli-Palestinian settlement to rid the Middle East of ``breeding grounds for hatred and mistrust.''
``We recognize Israel's right to exist. And we wish its people stability, safety and prosperity. But the Palestinian people have rights too,'' Abdullah said.
``And they include the right to statehood because without that, and without Israel's withdrawal from all occupied Arab territory, there will never be a just and lasting resolution to the conflict in our region.''
Speaking later after talks with British Prime Minister Tony Blair, Abdullah appeared to dismiss calls from other Muslim nations for a pause in the military campaign during the holy month of Ramadan, which starts in mid-November.
``All of us would like to see the situation in Afghanistan brought to a conclusion sooner rather than later,'' Abdullah said. ``But we have to remember that there are specific military objectives that have to be achieved.''
The Jordanian monarch's words would have been warmly welcome to Blair after the fierce Arab criticism of the four-week-old military action which greeted the prime minister on his Middle East tour last week.
Blair, President Bush's closest ally since the Sept. 11 attacks, insisted on a whirlwind visit to the United States on Wednesday there was a ``complete and total determination'' to prevail in Afghanistan.