Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak arrived in Rome a few days after his was rocked by suicide bombings targeting two Red Sea resorts last Thursday. The attacks were claimed by a group connected to Al-Qaeda.
After a two-day visit to Rome, Mubarak will have talks with President Jacques Chirac in Paris.
According to AFP, Mubarak told reporters in Italy that the attacks "brought into focus the sheer depth of human unity in the campaign agaisnt terrorism".
The Egyptian leader reiterated the need for an international conference to champion "an integrated approach which will underline the strategy of dialogue as an alternative to terrorism".
Above all, there was a clear need "to bring to an end the occupation of the Palestinian territories" and "to bring peace, stability and the capacity of self-government to Iraq," he said.
Mubarak also called for "a collective effort to bring an end to the state of desperation which feeds terrorism and bring to an end the double standars which continue to prevail in the approach to this question". (albawaba.com)
© 2004 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
