Arab Diplomats Meet to Discuss Changing Roles
Leaders Worry War on Terrorism Will Detract From Israeli Conflict

By Steven Mufson and Marc Kaufman
Washington Post Staff Writers
Monday, September 17, 2001; Page A07

Bush administration officials reached out to Arab nations again yesterday, urging them to help the United States combat terrorists for their own benefit, but the call has raised concerns among Arab diplomats about the potential targets of U.S. action and sparked a debate about how the conflict with Israel would be affected.

"They understand very clearly that it's as much in their interests as it is in ours that we end these kinds of activities and that we put a stop to this kind of international terrorism," Vice President Cheney said on NBC's "Meet the Press."

More than a dozen Arab ambassadors met Friday night at the home of Prince Bandar bin Sultan, Saudi Arabia's ambassador to the United States, and debated the dimensions of the new U.S. war against terrorism and their roles in it.

While the diplomats worried that a U.S.-led war on terrorism could roil their own Islamic nations and move focus away from Israel, one ambassador there said the diplomats recognized that the Sept. 11 attacks had changed everything. "People and countries will have to start thinking differently," he said. "Issues and sensitivities have to be reevaluated. We are looking at a different era."

Anxieties in the Middle East could mount if U.S. investigators continue to discover links between the hijackers in last week's attacks and countries such as Saudi Arabia that have dissidents and Islamic radicals within their borders. President Bush has vowed that the United States will pursue not only individual terrorists, but the countries that harbor them as well.

"Some people are afraid that the definition of terrorism will be widened to a point they would not feel comfortable with," said an ambassador who attended the meeting.

Some of the Arab nations fear the United States will use this opportunity to topple Iraqi President Saddam Hussein, while others disagreed about how groups helping Palestinians battle Israel might be affected. Though Hezbollah wasn't specifically named during the meeting, Syria's traditional support for the Lebanon-based group's attacks against Israel falls into what the United States considers support for terrorist organizations.

"These are legitimate questions," an ambassador argued, "but our feeling is you ask these questions from the inside. What's important is to show a united stand against terrorism and keep the focus on legitimate targets."

The Bush administration has been pushing for broad Arab support, especially because U.S. officials allege that accused terrorist Osama bin Laden, considered the prime suspect in Tuesday's attacks, and others draw financial support, recruits and training from several countries in the region.

Publicly, the United States has obtained clear expressions of support from most Arab countries, with Iraq the notable exception. It remains unclear, however, how extensive tangible support will be.

"We've heard from such nations as Syria, for example, which we have always said is a state that sponsors terrorism," Secretary of State Colin L. Powell said on CBS's "Face the Nation." "But they provided a rather forthcoming statement." He said that perhaps Syria would not only help target the main suspects in last week's attacks but also end its support of other groups the United States deems terrorist.

Jordan, which has helped the United States head off earlier terrorist attacks, welcomed the idea of a coalition against terrorism. "Some people are trying to portray this as a clash of civilizations," said Jordan's ambassador to the United States, Marwan Muasher. "We see it as a clash of civilization against terrorism."

The Arab ambassadors' meeting at Bandar's home -- which included the representatives of Syria, the Palestinian Authority, Algeria, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Jordan and Persian Gulf states -- had been preceded by a meeting of the ambassadors at the State Department with the assistant secretary of state for Near Eastern affairs, William J. Burns, and one of his deputies, David M. Satterfield.

"People want to make sure that this is not directed against Arabs and Muslims," said one ambassador, who said that Burns assured the ambassadors that an anti-terrorist war would not be.

One group that has offered troops as well as rhetorical support to the United States is the alliance of factions in northern and central Afghanistan fighting the Taliban for control of the country. Harun Amin, special envoy from the Afghan opposition, said yesterday that his group was eager to help American and international forces strike at bin Laden, who lives in Afghanistan under Taliban protection.

"We have 30,000 seasoned fighters, and we are willing to do the fighting in Afghanistan," said Amin, a member of the Afghan delegation to the United Nations, which is held by the Afghan opposition alliance because it includes the country's ousted government. "But we very badly need military supplies, communications supplies and support of all kinds."

Amin said he expects to meet today with administration officials and legislators.