Nine top Arab diplomats will meet in Damascus next week to forge a joint stand on a US-inspired roadmap for Arab-Israeli peace, a source at the Arab League said. The foreign ministers, who form a committee to follow up Arab summit resolutions designed to help the Palestinians, will meet November 20-21 to discuss US and European proposals to revive the moribund peace process, he said.

Arab League Secretary General Amr Mussa meanwhile said there would be such a meeting, but did not confirm the date.

The League source, who asked not to be named, said the ministers were to "formulate a vision on the American 'roadmap," which is also backed by the three other major powers, Russia, the European Union and the United Nations.

The so-called diplomatic quartet on the Middle East has been working on the roadmap to peace and is due to convene again in December.

The quartet met in New York in September and agreed on a general framework to ensure peace and stability in the Middle East -- crucially aimed at creating a Palestinian state by 2005 -- but failed to fill in the details.

"Intensive consultations are underway between Lebanon, the Arab League and Syria to prepare for the Damascus meeting, which was decided during a meeting of Arab foreign ministers" last weekend, the League source said.

Lebanon is involved because it hosted the last Arab summit in March.

The follow-up committee is also made up of Bahrain, Egypt, Jordan, Morocco, Saudi Arabia, Syria and Yemen as well as the Palestinian Authority and the Arab League secretary general.

Mussa meanwhile received a message from Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat about troubles in the occupied territories such as "the Israeli invasion of Nablus, cities and Palestinian camps, and Gaza's occupation by Israeli forces."

The Palestinian ambassador to the League, Mohammed Sobeih, who passed on the message, said their talks focused on the ways "to counter the dangerous Israeli aggression."

PHOTO CAPTION

Syrian Foreign Minister Farouq al-Shara (R) talks to Secretary-General of the Arab league Amr Moussa in Damascus on October 19, 2002. An Arab League source in Cairo has said that Arab Foreign minister will meet Nov 20-21 in Damascus to discuss a so-called 'roadmap' peace plan for the Middle East. REUTERS/ Khaled al-Hariri
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