Gaza war dominates the Arab Summit - World - Al-Ahram Weekly
Many Gulf leaders skipped this week's Arab Summit focusing on the Israeli war on Gaza just days after welcoming US President Donald Trump to the region
In its final communiqué, the 34th Arab Summit hosted in the Iraqi capital Baghdad this week reiterated the unanimous Arab position of rejecting any displacement of the Palestinians from Gaza and vowing to start the reconstruction of the Strip once the Israeli war stops.
The closing statement of the summit said that 'we reaffirm our categorical rejection of the displacement of the Palestinian people and stress the urgent need to deliver humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip.' It also urged the international community to intensify pressure aimed at ending the bloodshed in Gaza.
The leaders present at the summit highlighted the urgent need for a political solution to be found to halt the devastating conflict in Sudan and also condemned the 'Zionist aggression against Syria.' The statement concluded by saying that 'the purpose of the Arab Summit is to unify our efforts and serve the interests of the peoples of our region.'
However, only a handful of Arab leaders, including Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah Al-Sisi and Emir of Qatar Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani, attended the Arab Summit in Baghdad. Even Lebanon, whose president has never missed a summit, was represented by the prime minister. The Saudi delegation to was led by a deputy foreign minister, while Syrian Interim President Ahmed Al-Sharaa did not attend.
Al-Sharaa is pursuing regional rehabilitation after the regime change in Damascus late last year. However, according to reports Al-Sharaa decided not to go to Baghdad since he is 'wanted' in Iraq on charges of being involved in conflicts led by Al-Qaeda and the Islamic State (IS) in the country before moving to Syria.
The Arab Summit hosted Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez and UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, who reiterated the UN's refusal to partake in 'so-called aid operations' that do not adhere to international and humanitarian law. He was referring to a disputed US and Israel-backed plan to take aid into Gaza by creating special zones and using private contractors and bypassing the UN Palestinian refugee agency UNRWA.
The UN and other international organisations have said the plan endangers civilians and encourages their displacement. Guterres also repeated criticisms of Israel's annexation and expansion of settlements in the Occupied West Bank.
Sanchez devoted the majority of his remarks to the escalating humanitarian crisis in Gaza and the West Bank, describing the situation as 'intolerable and a violation of all humanitarian and international legal norms.'
'What is happening in Gaza and the West Bank cannot be ignored, neither in Europe, nor anywhere else in the world… Redrawing the map of the Middle East by force will awaken the darkest nightmares of our past,' Sanchez said.
'The time has come to recognise the two-state solution,' he said, adding that 'only a united Arab and European front will pave the way for recognition and peace.'
Sanchez also announced that Spain will host a ministerial meeting of the Madrid Group this week that brings together countries aligned on the recognition of Palestine. 'This initiative will reflect our unwavering commitment to advancing peace... Spain stands as a steadfast ally for multilateralism, the only path to lasting peace in the Middle East,' he said.
President Abdel-Fattah Al-Sisi said in his speech that 'even if Israel succeeds in forging normalisation agreements with all the Arab states, a durable, just, and comprehensive peace in the Middle East will remain fundamentally unattainable without the establishment of a Palestinian state in accordance with the resolutions of international legitimacy.'
He urged US President Donald Trump to 'make all the necessary efforts' to reach a truce in Gaza.
Egypt hosted a summit meeting on Gaza in Cairo some months ago where the Arab leaders agreed on establishing a reconstruction fund for the Strip, but continued Israeli aggression has delayed efforts to rebuild Gaza.
President Al-Sisi told the Baghdad Summit meeting this week that Egypt, in coordination with Qatar and the US, is 'exerting intense efforts to reach a ceasefire' in Gaza, adding that Egypt plans to hold an international conference for the reconstruction of Gaza 'once the aggression stops'.
He described Israel's actions as 'systematic crimes' aimed at 'obliterating and annihilating' the Palestinians and 'ending their existence in the Gaza Strip.'
Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani called for allowing aid to flow into Gaza. He added that Iraq will work on setting up an Arab fund for the reconstruction of the region to which Baghdad will pay $20 million for Gaza and a similar amount for Lebanon. The fund is expected to total around $50 billion.
Al-Sudani said of the war on Gaza that 'this genocide has reached levels of ugliness not seen in conflicts throughout history.'
'We have called, and continue to call, for serious and responsible Arab action to save Gaza and reactivate UNRWA,' he said
The Qatari Emir left the summit prematurely without delivering a speech, and no reason was given for his abrupt departure. However, he later wrote on X praising Baghdad's role in fostering an Arab consensus and joint action.
'The summit convened amid sensitive regional and global challenges that demand coordinated Arab and international responses,' he wrote, voicing optimism that the event's conclusions 'would advance integration across key sectors.'
Among the six Arab leaders who participated in the Baghdad Summit was Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, who called on Hamas to abandon power in Gaza, along with other militant groups, and to hand over its weapons to the Palestinian Authority (PA).
This is the first time that Iraq has hosted an Arab Summit meeting since 2012. After the Summit, Iraqi Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein noted that it had 'reflected growing consensus among member states and rejected foreign interference in regional affairs.'
Speaking at a joint press conference with Arab League Secretary-General Ahmed Abul-Gheit, Hussein pointed out that the summit had produced a set of decisions shaped by extensive discussions and resulting in 'converging positions on key political, economic, and social issues.'
He added that 'Iraq is committed to following through on summit resolutions within the appropriate political frameworks.'
In its coverage of the summit, the Israeli media focused on the speeches of the Egyptian President and Spanish Prime Minister and their criticisms of Israeli aggression and crimes against the Palestinians.
* A version of this article appears in print in the 22 May, 2025 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly
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