Arab foreign ministers on Tuesday voiced "full solidarity" with Lebanon against any attempt to sever its ties with Syria.  

"The ministers show full solidarity with Lebanon against any attempt to hit historic relations with Syria," said a statement issued at the end of a regular meeting of Arab foreign ministers in Cairo.

The ministers also renewed their rejection to a unilateral US sanction against Syria, the statement said.

On Sept. 2, the United Nations Security Council adopted a resolution demanding respect for Lebanon's political independence and withdrawal of Syrian forces from the country.

The United States, which accuses Syria of exerting too much influence over extending Lebanese incumbent President Emile Lahoud's six-year term, has circulated a draft resolution to other Security Council members.

Syria sent troops to help quell a year-old civil war in Lebanon in 1976 and the forces remained through 14 years of fighting and are still deployed in the country.

Lebanon's government has reiterated that the presence of the Syrian army has been a stabilizing factor since its 1975-90 civil war.

According to the statement, the ministers warned against one more wave of Palestinian exodus due to Israeli aggressions in the occupied territories.

"Israeli move, including the construction of the separation wall snaking into the West Bank, could lead to a fresh wave of forced migration," it said.

The ministers also said that a proposed Israeli withdrawal from the Gaza Strip would be conducive to further pullouts from the occupied Palestinian territories.

They also condemn any unilateral Israeli measures without coordination with the Palestinian National Authority, while pressing for providing an international protection force for the Palestinians.

On the Iraqi issue, they underlined the need to maintain Iraq's territorial integrity and respect for its sovereignty and independence as well as honor commitment to avoiding any interference in Iraq's internal affairs.

They condemned all acts of terror in Iraq that target civilians and police and security men and abductions undertaken by "terrorist" groups, particularly of those civilians working in Arab and foreign companies that rebuild Iraq.

The ministers also denounced air bombings and other military operations targeting Iraqi civilians and resulting in death of many innocent civilians, and called for putting an end to such acts.

They also stressed the importance of Arab presence in Iraq as well as resumption of diplomatic relations with Iraq in a bid to sustain political efforts being exerted by the interim Iraqi government in this area.

On the Sudanese issue, the ministers called for maintaining Sudan's territorial integrity, and said that they would rally regional and international efforts to secure a peace settlement to the Sudanese issue.

(Xinhua News Agency September 15, 2004)