By Xinhua
Amman : Jordan is sending a low-level delegation to the 20th Arab Summit due to begin on Saturday in Damascus, the pan-Arab Al-Jazeera television reported Friday. Jordanian delegation will be headed by Omar Rifai, Jordan’s representative to the Arab League instead of the King, according to Information Minister Nasser Jawdeh.
Jordan’ low-level delegation appears to be another snub to Syria, the host of the summit slated for this weekend. Heads of states or of governments usually attend in person the annual Arab League summit.
Syria, which was for decades the powerbroker in Lebanon until its 2005 troop pullout, already faces a snub by Arab powerhouses Egypt and Saudi Arabia, which are to send low-level delegations. Moreover, Morocco said to be represented at a similar level and Yemeni official also said Yemen President Ali Abdullah Saleh had changed his mind and now he decided that he won’t attend the Arab League summit in Syria this weekend.
Instead, Saleh is sending Vice President Abd Rabu Mansour to represent the country at the summit in Damascus, according to a Yemeni official.