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6A8'I A5A%IA 6audi Arabia¶s .ing 6alman opened a summit of Arab leaders yes terday by condemning an old foe, Iran, without making any reference to missile strikes by :estern powers on 6yr ian government targets over a suspected gasattack a week ago.
5egional powerhouses 6audi Arabia and Iran have been locked in a decades long struggle for supremacy that is being waged in pro[y wars in several countries, including <emen and 6yria.
“:e renew our strong con demnation of terrorist acts carried out by Iran in the Arab region, and we reMect its bla tant interference in the inter nal affairs of Arab countries,” .ing 6alman said in the east ern 6audi city of 'hahran, without giving specifics. Iran denies the charges.
.ing 6alman made no men tion of 6aturday¶s missile launch by the 8nited 6tates, %ritain and )rance against three alleged chemical weap ons facilities in 6yria. The 6yrian government denies us ing or possessing chemical weapons and said the strikes were an act of aggression. 6audi Arabia and its allies e[ pressed support for the strikes on 6aturday, but Iraq and /eb anon have condemned them. 2ther countries like -ordan and .uwait refrained from taking a position, instead re newing calls for a political so lution to the multi sided war which has killed at least half a million people in the past seven years. 0ilitary help over the past three years from 5ussia and Iran, which also backs /ebanon¶s He]bollah group and 6hi¶ite 0uslim militias in Iraq, has allowed 6yrian 3resident %ashar al Assad to crush the rebel threat to topple him.
6audi Arabia, which takes over the rotating chair of the Arab summit from -ordan, announced that the current gathering would be named the “4uds -erusalem 6ummit”, a reference to 8.6. 3resident 'onald Trump¶s decision last year to recogni]e -erusalem as the capital of Israel. .ing 6alman said 6audi Arabia was donating million to sup port the 3alestinians, includ ing million for the 8.1. 5elief and :orks Agency.
(Reuters)