The head of the Arab League Nabil al-Arabi said Sunday Arab countries would offer financial assistance to the Palestinians instead of the aid, which the United States threatened to halt over a Palestinian bid for a state, dpa reported.
"The Arabs will assist the Palestinian Authority. This will be the strongest answer (to the US threat)," al-Arabi told reporters in Cairo after talks with chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat.
"The Palestinian Authority rejects any haggling over the Palestinians' right to have their own state," Erekat said on Sunday.
He added that there were "consultations" with al-Arabi over "every step" pertaining to the bid for Palestinian statehood.
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas sought recognition of a Palestinian state and full membership of the United Nations at its General Assembly in New York on September 23.
But the US has vowed to use its veto power as a permanent member of the UN Security Council to stop the Palestinian bid.
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