Arab press call for unity

Arabic language newspapers in the Middle East and elsewhere on Wednesday call for Arabs to unite to oppose the US-led war on Iraq.

There is also some speculation about the next stage of the war and whether either side will resort to using chemical weapons.

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How can some Arabs back the enemies against their brothers, the occupation of their land and the looting of their oil resources?

Tishrin - Syria

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Arabs are currently facing the greatest danger and are facing a belligerent invasion campaign which is threatening their existence. They need to unite and iron out their differences.

Al-Thawrah - Syria

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Kuwait is playing with fire. The Kuwaiti Government is engaged in suicide policies by insisting on opposing any Arab solidarity with Iraq to confront American aggression.

Al-Quds Al-Arabi - London

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The Arab attitude to the war should not be limited to opposing it and calling for its end. There should be an Arab vision of the post-war stage.

Al-Sharq al-Awsat - London

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The Arabs' hatred of colonization and their hatred of the presence of the various kinds of foreigners [on their land] remains strong.

Ukaz - Saudi Arabia

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The state of despair which [Iraqi President] Saddam [Hussein] might face in the event of a raid on Baghdad may force him to use biological and chemical weapons.

Al-Riyadh - Saudi Arabia

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Under this dead-end situation, the US-led coalition forces might resort to using internationally prohibited chemical weapons.

Al-Bayan - UAE

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Washington's hope that its coalition forces would receive a warm welcome as a liberation force has been forfeited.

Al-Jumhuriyah - Egypt

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The summit between [US President George W] Bush and [UK Prime Minister Tony] Blair will not have any significance unless it is a summit to discuss ways of stopping the ongoing war against Iraq. If what is happening is for the interests of the Iraqi people, then it is up to the two leaders, Bush and Blair, to know that the interests of the Iraqi people lies first in stopping the aggression against them.

Al-Watan - Qatar

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The US and Britain have announced that they will send in food and clothing for the Iraqi people. Who told them that the Iraqi people are starving and are waiting for their humanitarian aid when their forces are bombing and killing tens of innocent Iraqi people?

Al-Jumhuriyah - Yemen

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The US needs a brave resolution - it should leave the Iraqi issue to the Iraqi people. No-one in Iraq is waiting for the freedom which it wants to bring under the helmet of its forces, and no-one in Iraq will be happy with it.

Al-Jamahiriyah - Libya

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Should the wrongdoers and the oppressive and unjust forces win the war it will only be a fleeting win. The evil axis and the evil forces will not gain their main political objective from the war.

Al-Akhbar - Egypt

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America will pay the price sooner that it thinks. There are no limits to American injustice and highhandedness. Despite its power and tyranny America will not win because it has no humanitarian values.

Al-Arab al-Alamiyah - London

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BBC Monitoring, based in Caversham in southern England, selects and translates information from radio, television, press, news agencies and the Internet from 150 countries in more than 70 languages.