A 'nail in Palestinian coffin'

Cairo: Saudi Foreign Minister Saud Al Faisal said on Saturday that the latest in-fighting between Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas's Fatah group and rival Hamas had served the interests of Israel.

"Today the Palestinians have come close to putting by themselves the last nail in the coffin of the Palestinian cause," he told Arab foreign ministers during a six-hour meeting in Cairo.

"The Palestinian leaderships must now issue an order, not just to stop the fighting immediately but also to outlaw fighting, and to return to dialogue," he said.

Also on Saturday, Arab governments gave Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas a vote of confidence and called for a return to peace and order in the Gaza Strip.

The 22 Arab League members also expressed support for the Palestinian parliament which is dominated by Hamas and condemned what they called "the criminal acts recently committed in Gaza".

Hamas imposed itself in Gaza on Friday after six days of battles against Fatah forces. Abbas named a new prime minister after firing the Hamas-led government and declaring a state of emergency.