Riyadh  - Seeking unity on the crisis in Gaza ahead of an event next week in Kuwait, leaders of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states gathered in Saudi Arabia on Thursday.

"The Riyadh meeting helped the Gulf states adopt a united stance towards the situation in Gaza," Saudi Foreign Minister Saud al-Faisal told a press briefing after the GCC summit ended.

Saudi King Abdullah called for the hastily-arranged emergency meeting after refusing, along with Egypt, to attend an emergency summit requested by Qatar for Friday.

The leaders are expected to formally meet in Kuwait on Monday at a scheduled economic gathering, and will discuss the Israeli offensive into Gaza on the sidelines with a view to adopting an official declaration.

The differences over when and where to meet reflected differences in the region over the Gaza conflict and the amount of support forthcoming for Hamas militants in the Gaza Strip.

The Arab League Secretary General Amr Mussa said the Kuwait meeting would be the "official meeting."

Qatar pushed to hold an emergency Arab summit on Friday, despite the lack of quorum.

Qatar needed 15 countries to accept the invitation, while only 13 of the 22 member states of the Arab League had agreed to attend.

"The quorum for Qatar Summit is enough, and whatever was to be discussed in Qatar will be discussed in Kuwait," al-Faisal said.

While Doha apparently continued to prepare for its summit, Qatar's Emir Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani attended the Riyadh closed-door meeting along with leaders of Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates.

Oman's Sultan Qaboos sent a representative in his place.

Some experts blamed the Arab states for their differences over when and where to hold a summit, saying it reflects the Arab division.

"This is one of the most important times where solidarity is needed. If (Arab) efforts were not aimed together, then we will be less effective and the situation will be more dangerous," al-Faisal added.

On Tuesday, King Abdullah and Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak said they prefer to hold consultations on Gaza on the sidelines of the Arab economic forum to be held in Kuwait next week.

Kuwaiti Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed al-Sabah told al-Arabiya news channel in an interview on Thursday that "Gaza will be in the heart of the Kuwait Summit, it will not be on the sidelines."

Also on Thursday, Arab League chief Amr Mussa said that Arab leaders will hold "an official" meeting to discuss the situation in Gaza, right after the opening session of the Kuwait Summit on Monday.

Mussa told reporters accompanying him in Kuwait that "an official declaration will come out of it, as it is not a consultative meeting."

Since the Israeli offensive on Gaza started on December 27, the Palestinian toll now stands at more than 1,095 dead and some 5,000 injured. dpa