Arab ministers laud HH the Amir for humanitarian role
Top diplomats vow to defeat ‘terror’
NOUAKCHOTT, July 24, (Agencies): Arab foreign ministers lauded His Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah for the great humanitarian role he has been playing on the Arab arena.
The expression of gratitude was included in the blueprint of the Arab Summit resolutions that have been submitted by the ministers to the top leaders.
The ministers, who have held preparatory sessions here in preparation for the Arab Summit due on Monday, praised His Highness the Amir, the Humanitarian Leader, for the role he had played regarding the Syrian crisis, as well as Kuwait’s hosting of three international conferences for aiding the Syrian people, in addition to the planned convention for supporting education in Somalia.
Kuwait hosted the first three conventions on Syria in 2013, 2014 and 2015. It also participated in the fourth one, held in London on February 4th. Total donations raised for aiding the Syrian people, during these eventful gatherings, have amounted to $1.6 billion.
His Highness and the State of Kuwait are also lauded for hosting the Yemen conciliation consultations.
Meanwhile, Arab foreign ministers vowed on Saturday to “defeat terrorism”, as they gathered for a regional summit just over a week after a jihadist-claimed truck attack in the French Riviera left 84 people dead.
In a statement, they also called for a “definitive solution” to the IsraeliPalestinian conflict, as Arab League heads of state prepared to meet in the Mauritanian capital on Monday and Tuesday.
Omar Bashir, the Sudanese president who is wanted by the world’s top criminal court, is expected to attend the summit.
“We must defeat terrorism, it’s a priority,” Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry said as the meeting began.
His Mauritanian counterpart Isselkou Ould Ahmed Izidbih called on Arab states to coordinate more closely with African nations in order to achieve this goal.
The ministers also agreed to support “all (initiatives) that can help to end the crises of the Arab world, especially the Syrian, Libyan and Yemeni conflicts”, a statement said.
And they welcomed a French and Egyptian initiative to help revive dormant Israeli-Palestinian peace talks.
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah elSisi and Saudi King Salman are both expected to attend the upcoming summit.
Bashir, wanted for genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity by The Hague-based International Criminal Court, is also expected in Nouakchott.
Ratified
However, as Mauritania has not ratified the ICC’s Rome Statute, chances that it will hand him over to the body are slim.
Despite facing charges over the Darfur conflict, which claimed more than 300,000 lives, Bashir has continued to travel, including to some nations that have ratified the treaty setting up the ICC.
Controversy erupted last year when the South African government did not arrest Bashir when he attended an African Union summit in Johannesburg.
The 27th Arab Summit, that kicks off in Mauritania’s capital Nouakchott on Monday, July 25, for two days, is the first the West African country hosts in history.
The 27th Arab leaders’ summit was originally set to be held in Morocco, but the Kingdom apologized for not hosting the major annual event, for the lack of “objective circumstances that guarantee a successful Arab summit.” Mauritania soon offered the summit.
The Nouakchott summit comes amid various challenges and crises facing several countries in the Arab region; namely the war on terror and the situation in Syria, Iraq, Libya and Yemen.
Following is a chronology of previous Arab summits: The Anshas Extraordinary Summit in Alexandria, Egypt was held on May 28 and 29, 1946 in support of Palestine. It was attended by seven Arab states. Participants in the summit prioritized the Palestinian cause, and warned of a Zionist threat, and stressed that any developments in Palestine will affect all Arab nations.
Summit
A decade later, November 1956, the Beirut Extraordinary Summit was held to address the Tripartite Aggression, the British-French-Israeli attack on Egypt. It was attended by nine Arab leaders who emphasized Egypt’s sovereignty over the Suez Canal according to the Oct 13, 1956 UN Security Council resolution 1888. The leaders hailed the Algerian people’s struggle to attain independence.
Then the 1st Regular Arab Summit was held in Cairo in January, 1964, calling for dissolving disagreements among the Arab states, establishing a joint military command for Arab armies, and considering Israel a danger that threatens the Arab nation.
Then the 2nd Regular summit was held in Egypt’s Mediterranean city of Alexandria, Sept 5 to 11, 1964. It called for boosting the Arab military defense capabilities, as well as enhancing the Arab cooperation in the fields of nuclear research for peaceful purposes, economy, culture, and media. It also urged the establishment of an Arab court of justice and welcomed the formation of the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO).
The 3rd Regular summit was held in Casablanca, Morocco, September 13 to 17, 1965, calling for the support of the Palestinian cause in all international forums. The Arab leaders also called for non-proliferation of nuclear weapons, and dissolving international conflicts peacefully. The summit witnessed the signing of the Arab Solidarity Charter.
The 4th Regular Arab Summit took place in the Sudanese capital, Khartoum, Aug 29, 1967 following the Israeli 1967 War. The Arab leaders then announced the three Nos; no peace with Israel, no negotiations with Israel, no recognition of Israel. They also agreed to establish Arab Fund for Economic and Social Development (AFESD).
On Sept 23, 1969, the 5th Regular Arab Summit was held in Rabat, but was adjourned without making any resolutions.
The 3rd Extraordinary Arab Summit was held in Cairo on Sept 27, 1970 to dissolve a Palestinian-Jordanian conflict.
The 6th Regular Arab Summit was held from Nov 26 to 28, 1973 in Algeria and demanded the withdrawal of Israel from all occupied Arab territories including Jerusalem. It also called for giving the Palestinian people their legal rights. The summit welcomed Mauritania’s joining the Arab League.
The 7th Regular Arab Summit, held in Rabat, Morocco, Oct 26-29, 1974, stressed the importance of liberating all Arab territories seized in the June 1967 attack, as well as rejecting all that might affect Arab sovereignty over Jerusalem. The summit acknowledged the PLO as the only legal representative of the Palestinian people.
Saudi Arabia called for a mini extraordinary Arab summit in support of Lebanon. The summit, held in Riyadh on Oct 16-18, 1976 with the participation of six Arab states, rejected the division of Lebanon and called for reconstruction in the country.
The 8th Regular Arab Summit convened in Cairo on Oct 25-26, 1976. It approved the resolutions made by the Riyadh summit and urged the Arab states to contribute to the reconstruction of Lebanon.
Rejected
The 9th summit, held in Baghdad from Nov 2 to 5, 1978, reiterated support to the PLO and rejected the Israeli-Egyptian Camp David agreement, saying it opposed the resolutions made by the Arab summits. The Arab leaders agreed to boycott Egypt and to temporarily freeze its membership in Arab League. They also decided to transfer the Arab League’s headquarters from Egypt to Tunisia.
The 10th Regular Arab Summit was held in Tunis, Nov 20-22, 1979. The Arab leaders condemned once again the Camp David agreement and the Israeli-Egyptian peace agreement. They called for consolidating relations with then the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC), the Organization of African Unity (OAU), the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM), and other organizations. The summit stressed Lebanon’s full sovereignty on all its territories, and the importance of preserving its national unity and independence, rejecting Zionist efforts to seize the southern part of the country.
Approved
The 11th Regular Arab Summit, held in the Jordanian capital of Amman, Nov 25-27, 1980, approved a joint Arab action program for facing Israel. It also okayed the Arab National Economic Charter.
The Moroccan city of Fes hosted the 12th Regular Summit, held on two phases, the first on Nov 25, 1981 while the second was on Sept 6-9, 1982. The summit approved King Fahd’s project for peace in the Middle East, which offered an Arab project for peace. The Arab leaders taking part in the Summit denounced the Israeli aggression against Lebanon, reaffirming support to the country regarding the implementation of the UN Security Council (UNSC) resolutions which demanded Israel’s withdrawal to the internationally-acknowledged borders.
Casablanca, Morocco hosted the 4th Extraordinary Arab Summit on Aug 7-9, 1985, which reiterated full commitment to the Arab Solidarity Charter, forming two committees to clear the Arab atmosphere. The summit emphasized a strong will to put a rapid end to the Iraq-Iran war through a peaceful, just, and honorable solution.
The participants also denounced all forms and sources of terrorism, topped by Israel’s terrorism in and outside the Arab occupied territories.
The 5th Extraordinary Arab Summit was held in Amman on Nov 8-11, 1987, as the Arab leaders denounced Iran’s occupation of Iraqi areas and expressed full support to Iraq in defending its soil. The summit also condemned Iran’s aggression against Kuwait, calling for guaranteeing freedom of navigation in the Arabian Gulf.
In addition, the Amman Summit declared support to Saudi Arabia and whatever measures the Kingdom took for securing safe performance of Hajj, condemning any acts of riot at the Holy Sites.
The Arab leaders denounced anew all forms and sources of terrorism, rejecting attempts to stigmatize national liberation movements as terrorism. They also backed a proposed international conference for the Middle East peace under the UN umbrella.