The GCC demanded an immedite end to the brutal attacks on the defenceless Palestinians in the Gaza Strip and urged the international community to immediately move to stop the gruesome massacres and barbaric practices by Israelis.

GCC Secretary-General Abdulrahman Al Attiyah said that world powers, especially the US, should shoulder their responsibilities at this critical time to end the mass punishment policy against the Palestinians. He denounced the silence of the international community, especially the US towards the massacres.

The Arab League called an urgent meeting of its foreign ministers in Cairo today to seek a common position on the attacks.

Several Arab countries, including Qatar, Syria and Yemen, suggested an early Arab summit in response to the violence, and Libya, the only Arab country on the UN Security Council, will seek an urgent meeting of the council in New York.

'The council of Arab foreign ministers will hold an extraordinary and immediate meeting tomorrow or the day after ... at the request of Jordan,' Arab League Secretary-General Amr Moussa said. His spokesman said later it would be today.

'It will take a joint Arab position on what is happening and at the same time agree on the steps to be taken,' Moussa added.

But Omani Information Minister Hamad bin Mohammed Al Rashdi said in Muscat that a meeting of Gulf foreign ministers would go ahead as planned today. Ministers can send deputies or ambassadors to the Cairo meeting.

Moussa said yesterday's attacks were only the beginning. 'We are facing a continuing spectacle which has been carefully planned. So we have to expect that there will be many casualties. We face a major humanitarian catastrophe,' he said.

In Damascus, the official Sana news agency said that Syrian President Bashar Al Assad was in contact with Arab leaders on the possibility of holding an emergency Arab summit.

The agency said that Assad, who hosted an Arab summit earlier this year, spoke to the leaders of Qatar, Libya, Sudan and Yemen to discuss the situation. 'Syria ... calls on Arab leaders to hold an emergency Arab summit to discuss the dangerous situation in Gaza,' the source said.

Qatari Amir Shaikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, also proposed that Arab leaders follow up the foreign ministers meeting by holding a summit, the Arab League said. Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh condemned the attack as a 'barbaric aggression' and called for an emergency Arab summit to discuss it.