Arab League to hold crisis talks on Jerusalem Saturday

The Arab League plans to hold an emergency foreign ministers' meeting on Saturday to discuss Washington's apparent intention to recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital.

The meeting will be held based on a request by league members Palestine and Jordan and endorsed by Morocco.

On Tuesday, permanent representatives to the Cairo-based league convened to discuss the same issue.

In a final communique, they called on the U.S. to play a "neutral and impartial role" with a view to hammering out a "lasting and comprehensive" peace in the region.

In earlier resolutions, the league had said that the recognition by any state of Jerusalem as Israel's capital -- or the establishment of diplomatic missions in the city -- would be seen as a "blatant attack on the Arab nation and Palestinian rights and a serious violation of international law".

Last Friday, American officials suggested that U.S. President Donald Trump planned to formally recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital in a Wednesday address.

Many critics, however, say such a move would put the U.S. at odds with the international community, reverse decades of U.S. Middle East policy, and stymy efforts to restart the Israel-Palestine peace process.