Arab-Islamic conference in Riyadh to discuss developments in the war in Lebanon and Gaza – DW – 11/10/2024

Leaders of Arab and Islamic countries have started arriving in Saudi Arabia, in preparation for a summit that will be held tomorrow, Monday (November 11), to discuss the war in Gaza and Lebanon and developments in the region. The extraordinary Arab and Islamic summit is being held in Riyadh, at the invitation of Saudi Arabia, to discuss the ongoing Israeli bombing of the Palestinian territories and Lebanon, and developments in the situation in the region, according to what the Saudi Press Agency said. “SPA” reported.

It should be noted that at the end of October, the Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced the conference at the first meeting of an international coalition established to bring about a two-state solution on to end the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

The extraordinary conference comes “as an extension of the joint Arab-Islamic meeting held in Riyadh on November 11, 2023” at the initiative of the Arab League (Cairo) and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (Jeddah ).

The Saudi Al-Ikhbariya channel broadcast scenes of the arrival of Nigerian President Bola Tinubu and Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati.

In a phone call with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said he would not be able to participate in the summit due to “urgent operational issues,” according to a government statement. He confirmed that the First Vice President Mohamed Reda Arif will attend the summit on his behalf.

It is expected that the Prime Minister of Pakistan, Shehbaz Sharif, will also participate in the summit, according to what the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Pakistan announced last week.

Among the fifty-seven members of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation and the twenty Arab League, there are countries that recognize Israel and others that oppose the regional integration.

The summit held last year in Riyadh saw a difference in conditions regarding the removal of economic and diplomatic relations with Israel and the elimination of oil supplies.

“Lebanon needs the support of the Arab and Islamic world”

In a related context, the Saudi Foreign Minister, Prince Faisal bin Farhan, chaired, in the capital, Riyadh, on Sunday, the minister’s preparatory meeting for the summit, and according to the Saudi Press Agency (SPA), “the meeting witnessed a discussion on the agenda of the upcoming conference, and the most prominent issues that will be discussed.”

For his part, Lebanon’s Minister of Foreign Affairs and Emigrants Abdullah Bou Habib confirmed on Sunday that Lebanon is determined to strengthen the deployment of the army in the south. The National News Agency said that Bou Habib said, in a speech today at the preparatory meeting for the Arab-Islamic conference in Riyadh, that “there is a pause and commitment to Resolution No. 1701 better than to continue the war.” He said, “Today more than ever, Lebanon needs the help and support of the Arab and Islamic world to stop the war on the elimination of diversity and coexistence among religions and civilizations in Lebanon.

The war in the Gaza Strip began after a terrorist attack by the Hamas movement on October 7, 2023, killing 1,206 people, most of them civilians, according to an Agence France-Presse account based on official Israeli figures, giving including those who died or were killed in custody.

During the attack, the terrorists kidnapped 251 people, 97 of whom are still in Gaza, including 34 who the Israeli army says are dead.

Since then, Israel has responded with devastating bombing and ground operations in the Gaza Strip, killing 43,603 people, most of them civilians, according to the latest figures from the Hamas Health Ministry.

The war spread to Lebanon after Hezbollah opened a front against Israel on October 8, 2023, in support of Hamas.

Since the end of September, Israel has intensified its airstrikes and started ground operations in Lebanon, about a year after it switched to cross-border bombing by the Iran-backed Hezbollah against the Gaza war.

It should be noted that the Hamas movement is an armed Palestinian Islamic group, classified in Germany, the European Union, the United States and other countries as a terrorist group. Many countries also consider Hezbollah, or its military wing, a terrorist organization, including the United States, European Union countries, Great Britain, and other countries. Germany banned the party’s activities on its territory in 2020 and declared it a terrorist organization.

HD/SH./ZAB (AFP, DPA)