The Ministerial Council reviewed also latest events in the Palestinian territory and developments of the middle east peace process. It looked forward to the evacuation of the Israeli settlements from the Gaza Strip as a step to be followed by other steps for the complete withdrawal from all occupied Palestinian lands to enable the Palestinian people to establish an independent state with Al-Quds as its capital. The Ministerial Council reiterated, in this regard, the adherence of the Council's states to the peace initiative presented by the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Abdullah bin Abdul-aziz at the Arab Summit held in Beirut in 2002 and adopted by the Summit to become an Arab initiative for peace in the region on the basis of the international legitimacy decisions. "This initiative should be considered as a genuine framework for achieving a just and comprehensive peace for the cause of the Palestinians." Warning against threats raised by an extremist Jewish group to raid Al-Aqsa mosque and attack it, the Ministerial Council affirmed that such threats are aimed at insulting feelings of the Muslims and violating the sacredness of the Holy sites. It confirmed that the just and comprehensive peace in the Middle East will not be realized unless the establishment of an independent Palestinian state with Al-Quds as its capital and the Israeli withdrawal from the occupied Arab Syrian Golan Heights to the borders of the 4th June, 1967 as well as from the remaining Arab lands in the Southern Lebanon. The Ministerial Council renewed its call on the international community to make the Middle East region free from all weapons of mass destruction including the Gulf region as well as force Israel to join the Non-proliferation Treaty (NPT) and submit all its nuclear installations for international inspection system of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and consider this as a basiccondition for any future security arrangements.--MORE1354 Local Time 1054 GMT www.spa.gov.sa/287708