Arab foreign ministers to meet in Cairo over Syria (Roundup)

The Arab foreign ministers will meet in Cairo Nov 3 to discuss the Syrian issue even as Lakhdar Brahimi, the UN-Arab League joint special envoy, arrived in Syria Monday.

The Arab foreign ministers will meet in Cairo Nov 3 to discuss the latest developments of the Syrian crisis, Egypt's official news agency MENA reported Monday.

The meeting, to be held in the Arab League headquarters in Cairo, will tackle the outcome of UN-Arab League joint special envoy to Syria Lakhdar Brahimi's visit to different countries in the region and preparations for the Geneva II Conference, Xinhua cited MENA as quoting a diplomatic source.

The meeting came upon a request from the Syrian opposition which seeks an Arab cover over the conference in face of current support for the Syrian government from some regional and international powers, the source added.

The head of the Syrian opposition coalition, Ahmed A'ssi Gerba, had asked Arab League chief Nabil al-Arabi to support the Syrian opposition in unifying its stances and crystallizing its visions if it decides to take part in the conference, the source added.

Brahimi, meanwhile, arrived in Syria Monday wrapping up a regional tour aimed at garnering support for the upcoming Geneva-II international conference on Syria.

Brahimi was received at the Syrian border by Deputy Foreign Minister Faisal Mekdad, Xinhua reported.

The visit to Syria aims at finalising details on the Geneva-II conference planned for the end of November.

The conference is designed to bring the Syrian opposition and the government to the negotiation table to hammer out a political solution to their long-standing conflict.