CAIRO, Egypt (AP) — The Arab League has appointed Hanan Ashrawi as its top press officer, a Palestinian intellectual with a record of championing civil rights and opposing corruption. League Secretary-General Amr Moussa announced the appointment Tuesday, saying Ashrawi would contribute to ``the Arab cause.'' Moussa said Ashrawi's position, director general of media affairs, is a new post in the Arab League, which represents 21 Arab countries and the Palestinian territories. Ashrawi, a 54-year-old Christian from Jerusalem, worked as a professor of English before entering politics full-time. She is married and has two daughters. Ashrawi came to prominence as the spokeswoman for the Palestinian delegation at the Madrid peace conference in 1991. She made her mark with quick, articulate answers to reporters' questions that the Israeli delegation often found hard to match. She went on to serve as spokeswoman for the Palestinian Authority and as minister of higher education in the authority's Cabinet. She resigned from the Cabinet in 1998 after Palestinian Leader Yasser Arafat failed to dismiss ministers who had been named in a report on corruption. Copyright 2001 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.