An Islamic summit in the Qatari capital neared an end Monday with a last-gasp protest from Kuwait over the wording of a resolution on Iraq.
The resolution, distributed to journalists, called for the UN Security Council to open a comprehensive dialogue with Iraq for a lifting of sanctions in force since its 1990 invasion of Kuwait.
It also called for Baghdad to "complete" its implementation of Security Council resolutions to which the sanctions regime is linked, watering down the tone of past resolutions passed by the 56-member Organization of the Islamic Conference.
But Kuwait's Foreign Minister Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad al-Sabah protested, during what organizers said was the final full session of the summit, that "the text of the resolution was neither read nor distributed."
Chairing the session, Qatar's Emir Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani replied, "You have the documents and they are in your hands," to which the foreign minister retorted, "I have not received anything," an AFP journalist witnessed.
Organizers, meanwhile, announced that a closing press conference would be held later Monday, winding up the summit a day earlier than scheduled. But it was unclear how the resolution row would be resolved.
Amid the chaos, Qatar and Kuwait entered a bilateral session at which the Qataris were trying to persuade the Kuwaitis to accept the resolution, an Arab diplomatic source said.
The source said the row was holding up the publication of other final resolutions by the summit, which already approved a separate declaration supporting the Palestinians in their uprising against Israel -- DOHA (AFP)
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