September 13, 2003	Saturday	Rajab 15, 1424

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ISLAMABAD, Sept 12: Pakistan on Friday condemned Israel’s decision to oust Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat from Palestine and called upon the international community to urge Israel to reconsider the decision.

The government of Pakistan expressed deep concern over Israel’s threat to expel President Arafat, foreign office spokesman Masood Khan said.

“President Arafat is duly elected head of state of Palestine and the decision to exile him from his own country is condemnable,” he said. The spokesman maintained that such a step would undermine the implementation of the quartet’s roadmap and would be a serious setback to the Middle East peace process.

“It is, therefore, incumbent on the members of the quartet (the United States, European Union, UN, and Russia) and members of the international community to ask Israel to reverse this decision,” he concluded.