Arab world urges Iraq to back down on weapons inspectors

CAIRO, Egypt -- America's allies in the Arab world fear a U.S. strike on Iraq would thrust their already unstable region into chaos, and they and others are urging Baghdad to act to avoid war.

Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak said on Tuesday that Arab leaders would not be able to contain outrage in the street in event of a U.S. attack on Iraq.

"There might be repercussions and we fear a state of disorder and chaos," Mubarak said at a question-and-answer session with Egyptian university students in the Mediterranean port city of Alexandria.

President Bush has called for Iraqi President Saddam Hussein to be toppled, saying his development of chemical, biological and nuclear weapons threatens the United States and the world in general. Even as officials stress that no decision has been made, they have been stepping up talk about why an attack is needed. The administration has accused Baghdad of rebuilding banned weapons programs and supporting terrorism and said it wants a "regime change."

Saudi Arabia, which during the Gulf War welcomed U.S. troops to protect it from Iraq, joined Mubarak in reiterating opposition to an attack. Saudi foreign policy adviser Adel al-Jubeir told CNN on Tuesday that the Saudis feel strongly that Saddam Hussein should be dealt with diplomatically.

Reasons for caution

Arabs, though, have reason to be wary of Saddam. He invaded an Arab state, Kuwait, in 1990, setting off the 1991 Gulf War.

At the Cairo headquarters of the Arab League on Tuesday, diplomats say, permanent representatives clashed over an Iraqi request to include an Arab message of support for Iraq on the agenda of a regional foreign ministers' meeting set for next week.

Many Arab governments wanted to include wording urging Iraq to accept the return of U.N. weapons inspectors, while Baghdad instead sought a firm Arab statement of solidarity, the diplomats said. In the end, they accepted a formula proposed by the Palestinian ambassador that they discuss threats against "some Arab countries, especially Iraq."

U.N. sanctions imposed on Baghdad after its 1990 invasion of Kuwait cannot be lifted until inspectors certify that Iraq's biological, chemical and nuclear weapons have been destroyed. U.N. weapons inspectors left Iraq in 1998 and Baghdad has barred them from returning, claiming it has met all U.N. requirements.