RIYADH — Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman on Monday renewed the Kingdom’s objections to Israeli attacks in Gaza and violations of Lebanon’s sovereignty.
In his opening statement at an extraordinary Arab and Islamic summit, hosted by Riyadh, he denounced the obstruction of aid efforts by humanitarian agencies in Gaza and rejected any diminishing of the role of the Palestinian Authority.
“The Kingdom condemns the obstruction of the relief efforts of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East in Palestinian territories, as well as the obstruction of the work of humanitarian organizations providing aid to the Palestinian people,” the crown prince said.
Israel formally notified the UN last week of its decision to sever ties with UNRWA after Israeli politicians voted in favor of the move on Oct. 28.
The international community must “immediately halt the Israeli actions against our brothers in Palestine and Lebanon”, the crown prince said, describing Israel’s campaign in Gaza as “genocide.”
He continued: “We condemn the Israeli military operations that have targeted Lebanese territories and we reject anything that threatens Lebanon’s stability and safety as well as anything that violates its territorial integrity.
“Israel’s continued criminal actions against innocent people, its violation of the sanctity of Al-Aqsa Mosque, and its undermining of the Palestinian Authority’s pivotal role in all Palestinian territories will hinder efforts to secure the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people and establish regional peace.”
The crown prince also condemned attacks against Iran, saying that the international community should put pressure on Israel to respect “the sovereignty of the Islamic Republic of Iran” and cease all hostile actions against its territories.
He said “we stand with our brothers in Palestine and Lebanon,” and reiterated that Palestine qualifies for full membership in the UN, as he stressed the necessity of establishing a Palestinian state.
“We launched a global initiative to support the two-state solution,” he added, referring to a call by Saudi authorities for more peace-loving countries to formally recognize a Palestinian state, through the UN General Assembly.
The crown prince praised the successful joint efforts by countries represented at the meeting to encourage nine additional nations to recognize the State of Palestine since Oct. 7, 2023, including Spain, Ireland, Norway, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, and the Bahamas. This is reflected in UN General Assembly resolutions affirming Palestine’s eligibility for full membership of the organization and demanding an end to Israel’s unlawful occupation of Palestinian territories, he said.
“In this spirit, we affirm the importance of continuing our joint efforts to establish a Palestinian state, within the 1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital,” the crown prince added.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan told the summit that Israel’s goal is to establish settlements in the Gaza Strip and annex the West Bank and East Jerusalem.
“So far, 50,000 Palestinians have been martyred, 70 percent of whom were children and women, in massacres carried out by Israel in Gaza and other Palestinian territories,” he said.
“It is extremely important that we continue our coordinated efforts to take coercive measures against those committing acts of genocide in Palestine, based on international law and the UN Charter. We cannot allow differences in opinion and positions among us to hinder our common cause.”
Erdogan also said that as many countries as possible must support South Africa’s case against Israel at the International Court of Justice over its actions in Gaza.
In his statement to the summit, Hissein Brahim Taha, secretary-general of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, stressed the need to fully implement UN Security Council Resolution 2735, adopted on June 10 this year, which calls for a ceasefire agreement, the sufficient and sustainable delivery of humanitarian aid throughout Gaza, the withdrawal of Israeli occupation forces, and efforts to enable the Palestinian government to fulfill its responsibilities in Gaza.
Echoing the Saudi crown prince’s remarks, Taha reiterated the need for a two-state solution that includes an independent Palestinian state, and its right to full membership of the UN. He also called for an immediate and total ceasefire in Lebanon in line with UN Security Council resolutions.
The secretary-general of the Arab League, Ahmed Aboul Gheit, said the actions of Israeli authorities reflect their plans to destroy Palestinian society in Gaza, displace its people and deconstruct an entire community and its social fabric, deliberately destroying any possibility of restoration and killing any hopes for an independent Palestinian state.
In doing so, he told the summit, Israel is crippling efforts to achieve a future of coexistence and peace in the region. He added that a lack of accountability has encouraged Israeli authorities to proceed with their unimaginable plans, but the summit sends a message that the world cannot continue to ignore the relentless violence.
Many Arab and Islamic leaders traveled to Riyadh on Monday for the summit. They included Erdogan; Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al-Nahyan, vice president of the UAE, deputy prime minister and chairperson of the Presidential Court; Shavkat Mirziyoyev, president of Uzbekistan; Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan, president of Sudan’s Transitional Sovereign Council; Bashar Assad, president of Syria; Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani, prime minister of Iraq; Sheikh Khalid bin Abdulla Al-Khalifa, deputy prime minister of Bahrain; and Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, president of Egypt.
They were joined by King Abdullah of Jordan; Qatar’s ruler, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani; Kuwait’s Crown Prince Sheikh Sabah Al-Khaled Al-Hamad Al-Sabah; Iran’s first vice president, Mohammad Reza Aref; Oman’s foreign minister, Sayyid Badr bin Hamad bin Hamood Albusaidi; and Bakary Yaou Sangare, Niger’s minister for foreign affairs.
The Palestinian president, Mahmoud Abbas, arrived in the Kingdom on Sunday, as did the Lebanese prime minister, Najib Mikati; Algeria’s foreign minister, Ahmed Attaf; the foreign minister of Guinea, Morissanda Kouyate; the president of Senegal, Bassirou Diomaye Faye; Chad’s president, Mahamat Idriss Deby Itno; the president of Tajikistan, Emomali Rahmon; Nigeria’s president, Bola Ahmed Tinubu; and Uganda’s third deputy prime minister Lukia Isanga Nakadama. The president of Mauritania, Mohammed Ould Ghazouani, also arrived on Sunday, after performing Umrah and praying at the Prophet’s Mosque in Madinah on Saturday.
Muslim countries’ response to Israel’s Gaza massacre inadequate — Erdogan
The Turkish president has criticised the lack of response from Muslim countries in addressing the ongoing genocide in Gaza, while accusing the Western nations of providing full support to Israel.
“A handful of Western countries have provided all kinds of support to Israel, while the failure of Muslim countries to respond adequately has led to the situation reaching this point,” Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Monday at the Extraordinary Joint Summit Meeting of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) and the Arab League in the Saudi capital Riyadh.
Erdogan said Türkiye has so far sent over 84,000 tons of aid to Gaza, and is ready to send much more when restrictions are lifted.
Israel cannot even tolerate the delivery of humanitarian aid to Gaza and has been keeping aid supplies waiting in Egypt for months, Erdogan further said. “We are ready” to implement all tangible actions that will show the heavy cost of the Netanyahu government’s continued occupation of Palestinian territory, the Turkish president said.
“We should encourage as many countries as possible to intervene in the case filed by South Africa against Israel at the International Court of Justice,” he underlined.
Regional tensions have escalated due to Israel’s brutal offensive on Gaza, which has killed more than 43,600 people, mostly women and children, following Palestinian resistance group Hamas attack last year.
As the conflict spread to Lebanon with Israel launching deadly strikes across the country, nearly 3,200 people have been killed and more than 13,800 others injured in Israeli attacks since last year, according to Lebanese health authorities.
Despite international warnings that the Middle East region was on the brink of a regional war, Tel Aviv expanded the conflict by launching on October 1 a ground invasion into southern Lebanon.
C. Arab News, TRT World