Arab group appeals to UN Council on mosque dig

UNITED NATIONS, Feb 9 (Reuters) The Arab group at the United Nations appealed to the UN Security Council to stop Israeli excavation near Jerusalem's most important holy Islamic site.

The excavations, which Israel says aim to salvage artifacts before construction of a pedestrian bridge leading to the complex, also sacred to Jews, have angered Muslims.

They fear the work, which began on Tuesday, could damage the foundations of the 1400-year-old al-Aqsa mosque but Israel says its construction would do no harm.

At a meeting of the Arab group yesterday, members agreed to send a letter to UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and the Security Council to discuss the issue, beginning with the council's monthly meeting on the West Asia next Tuesday.

In a statement, Arab ambassadors asked the Security Council ''to take immediate and urgent measures to put an end to Israeli violations and to guarantee its respect for international law and Security Council resolutions.'' The group ''denounced the Israeli occupation authority's escalation of its aggression on Islamic endowments in occupied East Jerusalem by starting to destroy a historic route,'' the statement said.

The UN meeting was called by Palestinian envoy Riad Mansur and chaired by Kuwait's UN ambassador, Abdullah Ahmed Al-Murad.

Separately, Arab states have asked Israel to halt the work at Islam's third holiest shrine and some Palestinians have threatened to end a three-month old Gaza truce with Israel.

REUTERS PDM VV0924