Arab League summit concludes with Assad and Zelensky in attendance

Update Arab League summit concludes with Assad and Zelensky in attendance
1 / 4
Update Arab League summit concludes with Assad and Zelensky in attendance
2 / 4
Update Arab League summit concludes with Assad and Zelensky in attendance
3 / 4
Update Arab League summit concludes with Assad and Zelensky in attendance
4 / 4
Short Url
Updated 21 May 2023
Follow

Arab League summit concludes with Assad and Zelensky in attendance

Arab League summit concludes with Assad and Zelensky in attendance
  • Syrian President Bashar Assad was welcomed back after a 12-year suspension
  • Ukrainian president tells delegates his country in a state of war – not just a conflict

JEDDAH: Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman told the Arab League Summit on Friday that they must not allow the region to turn into a conflict zone, but reassured the world that “world peace” was near.

The Kingdom hosted the summit in which Syrian President Bashar Assad was welcomed back after a 12-year suspension and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky made a surprise visit to rally support for his country.

“We assure friendly countries in the East and the West that we are moving forward in peace. We will not allow our region to turn into a zone of conflict,” the crown prince said.

“It is enough for us, with turning the page of the past, to remember the painful years of conflicts that the region lived through, it is enough for us to have conflicts that the peoples of the region suffered from and because of which development was faltered in the region,” he added.




Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman speaking at the Arab League Summit in Jeddah. (SPA)

And on Syria the crown prince said: “We hope that Syria’s return to the Arab League will mark an end to its crisis.”

The crown prince emphasized that the Palestinian cause was, and still is, the pivotal issue for all Arabs.

He also expressed hope that dialogue would lead to a resolution of the crisis in Sudan. “Saudi Arabia is welcoming the signing of the Jeddah Declaration by the two parties involved in the conflict in Sudan,” he said.

The outgoing chairman of the Arab League has called on the world to bring the Israeli settlement policy to an end and he added: “The Palestinian cause was and still is the central issue of the Arabs.”

Ukranian President Volodymyr Zelensky – who had arrived in Jeddah a short time before – told delegates his country was in a state of war – not just a conflict.




Ukranian President Volodymyr Zelensky with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. (SPA)

He also said he appreciated the Saudi mediation for the release of prisoners of war last year.

The crown prince said: “We reaffirm the Kingdom’s position supportive to everything that contributes to reducing the intensity of the crisis in Ukraine, and not to allow further worsening of the humanitarian situation there, Saudi Arabia is ready to continue mediation efforts between the Russian Federation and Ukraine.”

Also on Friday, Russian President Vladimir Putin sent a cable to the Arab League saying his country would continue to provide all possible assistance to settle the Palestinian-Israeli conflict.

He also said Moscow intended to expand its multifaceted cooperation with Arab countries, and remained keen to support efforts to resolve the crises in Sudan, Libya and Yemen.

In his opening remarks of the summit outgoing Arab League chairman Algerian prime minister Aymen Benabderrahmane, praised Saudi Arabia for hosting the event.

He added that the world was going through increased polarization with an energy crisis and face threats to food security.

He said all efforts to solve the ongoing crisis in Yemen would be appreciated.

 

Jordan’s ruler King Abdullah II told the summit the system of joint Arab action required the cooperation between the countries to be strengthened.

And he added: “A fair and comprehensive peace will only be achieved through the establishment of an independent Palestinian state.

King Abdullah said the crisis in Syria had come at a high price. “We welcome its return to the Arab League,” he added, addressing the Syrians.

Egyptian president Abdel Fattah El-Sisi said countries were going through a harsh period.

“Preserving the national institutions of our countries is necessary and vital,” he said.

He said Egypt was continuing in its efforts to stabilize Gaza,  and he affirmed the need to establish a Palestinian state to achieve regional peace.




Egyptian president Abdel Fattah El-Sisi welcomed to the summit by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. (SPA)

Palestine’s President Mahmoud Abbas called on the international community to “provide protection to the Palestinian people,” and to “resort to all international courts to restore our rights.”

But he thanked his Arab neighbors for their support.

“We commend the firm positions of Arab leaders towards the Palestinian cause.”

Tunisian President Kais Saied condemned what he described as the international community’s inaction over Palestine.

“There must be an end to the violations against the Palestinian people and the international silence towards them,” he said.




Tunisian President Kais Saied. (Screenshot)

Syrian President Bashar Assad thanked Saudi Arabia for promoting the reconciliation in the region in his first speech to the Arab League in over a decade.

“We are facing a historic opportunity to sort out our situation without foreign intervention,” he said.

Without mentioning specific countries, he then went onto add: “We must prevent foreign interference in our affairs.”

 

Saudi Crown Prince Mohamed bin Salman had welcomed dignitaries through the afternoon for the start of the Arab League Summit in jeddah.

Representatives started arriving for meetings in the build up to the summit earlier in the week.

Among the most notable arrivals for the main meeting was Syrian President Basha Assad who was greeted by the crown prince before the pair shook hands and then posed for a photograph.




Syrian president Bashar Assad with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. (SPA)

It's the first time in more than a decade that Assad was excluded from the alliance.

A short time before the opening of the summit, images were transmitted around the globe of Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky as he arrived for what he described as a historic visit to build relations with Arab nations.

Qatar's Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani was the first Arab leader to leave the summit on Friday afternoon, as others began returning home in the evening.


Morocco sets aside nearly $12 bn for quake recovery

Morocco sets aside nearly $12 bn for quake recovery
Updated 31 sec ago
Follow

Morocco sets aside nearly $12 bn for quake recovery

Morocco sets aside nearly $12 bn for quake recovery
  • Fund to be used for reconstruction in places affected by the September 8 earthquake

RABAT: Quake-hit Morocco’s government announced on Wednesday a budget of more than $11 billion for reconstruction, rehousing and socio-economic development of areas hit by the deadly disaster.
The 6.8-magnitude earthquake hit Al-Haouz province south of Marrakech on September 8, killing nearly 3,000 people and injuring thousands more.
The government said in a statement it was setting aside 120 billion dirhams ($11.7 billion) to help 4.2 million inhabitants affected by the quake over a period of five years.
The funds would be used to “rehouse affected people, reconstruct homes and restore infrastructure,” said the statement published at the end of a meeting chaired by King Mohammed VI.
The earthquake razed thousands of homes in central Morocco, including the High Atlas mountain range, forcing families to sleep out in the open with winter around the corner.

 


 


Kuwait affirms countries’ right to maintain independence, territorial sanctity

Kuwait affirms countries’ right to maintain independence, territorial sanctity
Updated 30 min 21 sec ago
Follow

Kuwait affirms countries’ right to maintain independence, territorial sanctity

Kuwait affirms countries’ right to maintain independence, territorial sanctity
  • Kuwait’s Deputy Foreign Minister Sheikh Jarrah Jaber Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah emphasizes nonintervention in states’ internal affairs and the need for conflicts to be resolved peacefully
  • Al-Sabah delivers address on safeguarding global peace at UN Security Council session on margins of 78th UN General Assembly

NEW YORK: Kuwait’s Deputy Foreign Minister Sheikh Jarrah Jaber Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah affirmed countries’ right to maintain sovereignty, independence and territorial sanctity in a speech during a UN Security Council session.
Addressing a session on safeguarding global peace on the margins of the 78th UN General Assembly, Al-Sabah emphasized nonintervention in states’ internal affairs, resolving conflicts peacefully and abstaining from the use of force, as well as people’s right to self-determination, and encouraging respect for human rights.
Kuwait News Agency reported on Thursday that the deputy foreign minister underlined the significance of the UN charter’s goals and principles, especially the “role in defending small countries.”
Al-Sabah said that due to a range of issues, the global order is facing its toughest test since the UN’s establishment in 1945.
“The international community has no choice other than uniting to face regional and international challenges.
“Kuwait renews its rejection of using force or resorting to threats in the relations among states,” KUNA reported Al-Sabah as saying.
Al-Sabah called for Ukraine’s independence and sovereignty to be respected.
“We call on the parties (of the Ukrainian conflict) to abide by the rule of the international law and the humanitarian law in respect of protecting civilians, facilitating safe and rapid delivery of humanitarian aid to those in need,” he told the UN session.
Al-Sabah also called for the Black Sea grain deal to be renewed.
 


Lone gunman fires at US Embassy in Lebanon

Lone gunman fires at US Embassy in Lebanon
Updated 21 September 2023
Follow

Lone gunman fires at US Embassy in Lebanon

Lone gunman fires at US Embassy in Lebanon
  • Surveillance cameras showed a lone gunman dressed in black firing a Kalashnikov rifle before fleeing the scene on a motorcycle
  • Embassy spokesman Jake Nelson: There were no injuries and our facility is safe

BEIRUT: Lebanese security forces are investigating a late-night gun attack on the US Embassy in Beirut in which more than a dozen shots were fired.

The diplomatic mission said that no one was hurt in the incident late on Wednesday.

Surveillance cameras showed a lone gunman dressed in black firing a Kalashnikov rifle before fleeing the scene on a motorcycle.

Embassy spokesman Jake Nelson said: “There were no injuries and our facility is safe,” adding that the mission was in “close contact” with local law enforcement.

Lebanese military police marked at least five bullet holes in the wall next to the embassy entrance.

The military judiciary has taken over the investigation into the attack.

A judicial source told Arab News that the shooting was likely “a political message to the embassy rather than a security incident.”

The source said that a bag had been found near the embassy’s perimeter, but “its contents or possible connection to the incident remain undisclosed.”

No group has claimed responsibility for the attack on the heavily guarded compound.

The Lebanese army has beefed up security around the site.

An army checkpoint, hundreds of meters away, monitors anyone using the road.

Reformist MP Melhem Khalaf described the incident as “an extremely dangerous and unacceptable attack, reflecting both the fragility of the security situation on the one hand and an unprecedented audacity in conveying messages on the other, as if we have become a banana republic.”

Khalaf said: “In order to nip in the bud any conspiracy or any rogue security project that may target Lebanon, the judiciary and security services must act immediately to identify the perpetrators, arrest them, and impose the harshest penalties on them.”

The head of the Lebanese Kataeb Party, MP Samy Gemayel, said: “Checkpoints, identity checks and shots fired at embassies are scenes that the Lebanese people want to eliminate by building a respected state. Beware of the escalation of these incidents, as they will not be in anyone’s interest, especially those who instigate them.”

MP Ziad Hawat warned against “playing with fire at this critical and sensitive moment,” adding that “Lebanon can no longer tolerate the policy of serving as a mailbox and sending messages to serve foreign interests.”

Independent Beirut MP Fouad Makhzoumi said: “The US has always stood by Lebanon and its people, supported and backed it in all circumstances and during the most difficult ordeals it has faced.”

The attack and “other such suspicious practices, tarnish the true image of Lebanon and do not represent it in any way, jeopardizing its international relations,” he said.

Alfred Riachi, secretary-general of the Permanent Conference of Federalism, said: “The message of the de facto forces has reached the Army Commander, Gen. Joseph Aoun.”

The embassy attack comes amid rumors circulating in Beirut regarding US opposition to a French initiative to hold talks between rival Lebanese paries on the election of a president.

The divided Lebanese parliament, with Hezbollah supporters and Christian parties opposed to its candidate Suleiman Frangieh, has been unable to secure a quorum for any candidate.

The year-old presidential vacuum could now extend to key positions of power, including the army command, presidency of the Supreme Judicial Council, and governorship of the central bank, all of which are Christian positions.

In an address to mark International Day of Peace on Thursday, Joanna Wronecka, the UN special coordinator for Lebanon, warned that “the presidential vacuum, the political impasse, and a protracted socioeconomic and financial crisis were undermining the ability of state institutions to deliver, widening the gap of poverty and inequality, and imperiling the country’s stability.

“The deepening political polarization and intransigence is threatening Lebanon’s social cohesion and the sense of belonging among its people. Political leaders must act in the national interest, and seek real and practical solutions for a better future for their country,” she said.


International community must help stop Houthi militias: Yemeni president

Chairman of Yemen’s Presidential Leadership Council, Rashad Al-Alimi, addresses 78th UNGA in New York City on September 21, 2023
Chairman of Yemen’s Presidential Leadership Council, Rashad Al-Alimi, addresses 78th UNGA in New York City on September 21, 2023
Updated 21 September 2023
Follow

International community must help stop Houthi militias: Yemeni president

Chairman of Yemen’s Presidential Leadership Council, Rashad Al-Alimi, addresses 78th UNGA in New York City on September 21, 2023
  • Rashid Al-Alimi, chairman of the Presidential Leadership Council of Yemen, spoke at the UN General Assembly in New York
  • Al-Alimi condemned Houthi militia activity in his country and called for international support to end the decade-long conflict

NEW YORK: The world must do more to stop the flow of arms and resources to Iran-backed Houthi militias, Rashid Al-Alimi, the chairman of Yemen’s Presidential Leadership Council, said on Thursday.

Al-Alimi, the opening speaker at the 8th plenary meeting of the 78th UN General Assembly’s general debate in New York, strongly condemned human rights violations committed by the Houthis since the conflict erupted in Yemen almost a decade ago.

He first called for “an end to the suffering of the Yemeni people,” and commended the international community for supporting “the constitutional legitimacy, sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity of Yemen and noninterference in its international affairs.”

Al-Alimi said that despite attempted compromises and efforts by the government, “peace remains elusive” in Yemen.

“We do hope that the militias will recognize the truth — that only a state that is based on the rule of law and equal citizenship will help to make sure that our country is stable and safe. These are the demands of the legitimate government,” he said.

Al-Alimi warned that if Houthi militias are allowed to continue their insurgency unchecked, “our country may become a hotspot for exporting terrorism.”

He added: “If we deal with the militias as a de facto authority, this means that oppression, the violation of freedoms — we will not be able to eradicate this behavior easily.”

Houthi militias are using peace agreements to prolong the conflict and gain time to gather more resources, he said.

Sustaining peace and ending the war is the only way to guarantee rights, freedom and equality for the Yemeni people, and build good relations with other Gulf Cooperation Council countries, Al-Alimi said.

He called for the strengthening of the Yemeni economy via the country’s central bank in order to improve service conditions in Yemen and prevent funds from falling into the hands of the Houthis.

“The institutions of Yemen will remain underfunded and will not have the necessary resources to deal with these cross-border challenges” if funds are not directed to recognized governmental financial institutions, Al-Alimi said.

He ended his speech with a call for the international community to intervene in Yemen to end Houthi activity in the region.

“Every delay from the international community to be firmer when it comes to the Yemeni dossier will increase losses, and Houthi militias will continue with their cross-border threats. They will continue to commit grave violations of human rights,” he said.

Al-Alimi said that although the Yemeni budget and economy was strong enough to allow for the provision of adequate services for the Yemeni people at the beginning of the war, Houthi attacks on oil facilities had halted the pre-war economic momentum.

“Houthi militias recently escalated their threats, targeting navigation routes in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden. They’ve used these as military areas. They’ve tested new weapons. They’ve targeted commercial ships and tankers. These militias, supported by the Iranian regime, continue to destabilize the region,” he said.

Al-Alimi said that his speech took place on the ninth anniversary of the Houthi takeover in Yemen. He called on UN member states to commit to an arms embargo to stop Houthi access to weaponry such as ballistic missiles and drones.

He also thanked Saudi Arabia for a “generous donation of $1.2 billion to support our public budget,” saying that without the grant, “we would have been unable to honor our obligations, including the disbursement of salaries.”


Libya flood disaster displaced over 43,000 people: IOM

Libya flood disaster displaced over 43,000 people: IOM
Updated 21 September 2023
Follow

Libya flood disaster displaced over 43,000 people: IOM

Libya flood disaster displaced over 43,000 people: IOM
  • International aid groups giving estimates of up to 10,000 people missing
  • The United Nations warned this week that disease outbreaks could bring “a second devastating crisis” to the flood-hit areas

Derna: Libya’s flood disaster, which killed thousands in the city of Derna, also displaced more than 43,000 people, the International Organization for Migration said Thursday.
A tsunami-sized flash flood broke through two aging river dams upstream from the coastal city after the Mediterranean Storm Daniel lashed the area on September 10.
It razed entire neighborhoods, sweeping untold thousands of people into the sea.
The official death toll stands at more than 3,300 — but the eventual count is expected to be far higher, with international aid groups giving estimates of up to 10,000 people missing.
“An estimated 43,059 individuals have been displaced by the floods in northeastern Libya,” the IOM said, adding that a “lack of water supply is reportedly driving many displaced out of Derna” to other areas.
“Urgent needs include food, drinking water and mental health and psychosocial support,” it said.
Mobile and Internet services were meanwhile restored after a two-day disruption, following protests Monday that saw angry residents blame the authorities for the high death toll.
Authorities had blamed the communications outage on “a rupture in the optical fiber” link to Derna, but some Internet users and analysts charged there had been a deliberate “blackout.”
Tripoli-based Prime Minister Abdulhamid Dbeibah announced that communications had been restored in the east, in a post on X, formerly Twitter, on Thursday.
War-scarred Libya remains split between Dbeibah’s UN-backed and nominally interim government in the west, and another in the disaster-hit east backed by military strongman Khalifa Haftar.
The dams that were overwhelmed by the torrential rains of September 10 had developed cracks as far back as the 1990s, Libya’s top prosecutor has said, as residents accused authorities of negligence.
Much of Libya’s infrastructure has fallen into disrepair in the chaos since a 2011 NATO-backed uprising toppled and killed dictator Muammar Qaddafi.
Haftar’s forces seized Derna in 2018, then a stronghold of radical Islamists, and with the reputation as a protest stronghold since Qaddafi’s days.
The demonstrators had gathered on Monday outside Derna’s grand mosque and chanted slogans against the parliament in eastern Libya and its leader Aguilah Saleh.
In a televised interview Wednesday evening, Libya’s prosecutor general Al-Seddik Al-Sour vowed “rapid results” in the investigation into the cause of the tragedy.
He added that those suspected of corruption or negligence “have already been identified,” without naming them.
Survivors in have Derna meanwhile faced new threats.
The United Nations warned this week that disease outbreaks could bring “a second devastating crisis” to the flood-hit areas.
Local officials, aid agencies and the World Health Organization “are concerned about the risk of disease outbreak, particularly from contaminated water and the lack of sanitation,” the UN said.
Libya’s disease control center has warned that mains water in the disaster zone is polluted and urged residents not to use it.