Arab leaders in ceasefire call as refugee camp strikes surge
Regional leaders yesterday called again for a ceasefire in the Israel-Gaza war, as Israeli forces intensified attacks on refugee camps in central areas of the besieged enclave.
Jordan’s King Abdullah II arrived in Cairo to hold talks with Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah El Sisi on the situation and escalating humanitarian crisis.
The leaders said the only solution to the crisis was an immediate ceasefire followed by a return to the two-state solution and an establishment of a Palestinian state based on the June 1967 borders.
“There is a political and moral responsibility on all countries to implement the United Nations and Security Council decisions in a way that preserves the credibility of the organisation,” an Egyptian presidency spokesman said.
The UN General Assembly has voted repeatedly for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire. The US blocked similar votes from passing the UN Security Council, but abstained on a UAE-drafted resolution vote last week to increase aid into Gaza.
King Abdullah and Mr El Sisi met as Israel stepped up its bombardment of refugee camps in central Gaza, near the city of Deir Al Balah.
Heavy fighting also continued in Khan Younis in southern Gaza. Israeli shelling killed at least 20 people near Al Amal Hospital, said the Palestine Red Crescent, which has its headquarters in the complex.
The leaders also rejected as unacceptable any attempts to force Palestinians to move to either Jordan or Egypt – both of which border Israel and Palestinian territories, said the presidency spokesman.
Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman also called for a ceasefire in his first annual speech to the Shura Council in Riyadh on behalf of his father, King Salman. Prince Mohammed highlighted the kingdom’s role in building co-operation to restrain Israel.
He said this had included hosting an extraordinary joint Arab-Islamic summit “to create a joint Arab and Islamic movement to put pressure on the international community to take serious and firm stances to stop the Israeli aggression” and allow aid to enter Gaza.
Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman delivered the annual royal speech on behalf of King Salman for the first time yesterday.
It concerned the work of the 150-member Shura Council, in its fourth year, and addressed the kingdom’s progress, as well as the Israel-Gaza war.
The speech was a road map for Saudi Arabia’s domestic and international plans, council member Sheikh Abdullah Al Sheikh said.
Prince Mohammed said Saudi Arabia pursues a foreign policy based on respect for the sovereignty of all countries, non-interference in their internal affairs and permanent commitment to international legitimacy.
The kingdom hosted a number of summits that brought together more than 100 countries in the past year and worked to create an Arab and Islamic movement to stop Israeli aggression against Gaza, he said.
In November, Saudi Arabia hosted an extraordinary joint Islamic-Arab summit in Riyadh with the Organisation of Islamic Co-operation and the Arab League.
The summit was held to address “the painful events facing our brothers in Gaza, through which the kingdom worked to create a joint Arab and Islamic movement to put pressure on the international community to take serious and firm stances to stop Israeli aggression and allow humanitarian aid to enter Gaza”, Prince Mohammed said.
The summit adopted a final resolution that said: “We express our joint stance in condemning the brutal Israeli aggression against the Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip and in the West Bank, including Al Quds Al Sharif (Jerusalem).
“We affirm addressing together this aggression and the humanitarian catastrophe that it causes. We seek to stop and end all Israeli illegal practices that perpetuate the occupation and deprive the Palestinian people of their rights, especially their right to freedom and to have an independent sovereign state on all their national territory.” The summit was also Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi’s first visit since Riyadh and Tehran agreed to rapprochement in March after seven years.
Prince Mohammed also hailed Saudi Arabia’s economic progress under its Vision 2030 plan.
Riyadh’s selection as host of Expo 2030 “confirmed global trust in Saudi Arabia as an ideal host for the world’s most prominent international forum”, he said.
Saudi Arabia hosted the Future Investment Initiative in October, which brought together 5,000 delegates from 90 countries.
“Our country achieved historic performance in tourism, during the first quarter of 2023, growing by 64 per cent, and we will continue to work on the process of economic transformation in accordance with the goals of the Vision 2030,” Prince Mohammed said.
Visitors from 120 countries attended the World Tourism Day event in Saudi Arabia in September.
He said that the kingdom had advanced in many sectors, “including its progress in more than 50 per cent of the UN sustainable development indicators.”
Prince Mohammed also hailed the success of the Hajj and Umrah pilgrimages this year.
The kingdom opened its doors to more than 1.8 million Hajj pilgrims and more than 10 million Umrah pilgrims, he said.
“Your country is continuing its development renaissance in accordance with Vision 2030 and its ambitious programmes, which, God willing, will contribute to the kingdom maintaining its advanced position globally, achieving further development and prosperity, and providing a decent life for citizens,” he said.
Riyadh’s selection as host for Expo 2030 was confirmation of ‘global trust in Saudi Arabia,’ Prince Mohammed said