Arab leaders toughen denunciations of Israel as it ramps up Gaza bombing
By Ahmed Rasheed and Moayed Kenany
BAGHDAD (Reuters) -Arab leaders at a summit in Baghdad called on Saturday for an immediate end to the war in Gaza, accusing Israel in starker language of trying to drive the Palestinians out of the enclave altogether after it ramped up its bombing campaign.
Israel has killed hundreds of Palestinians since Thursday in one of the deadliest waves of bombardment since a truce collapsed in March, even as U.S. President Donald Trump wrapped up a Middle East tour on Friday.
Egyptian President Abdel-Fatah al-Sisi, whose country is one of the main mediators in Gaza peace talks, 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, the summit's host, said Israel was engaged in genocide.
U.N Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, who addressed the summit, said "nothing justifies the collective punishment of the Palestinian people".
After a six-week ceasefire, Israel imposed a total blockade of Gaza and resumed its military campaign in March. It blames Hamas fighters for harm to civilians for operating among them, which Hamas denies.
Israel's declared goal is the elimination of the military and governmental capabilities of Hamas, which attacked Israeli communities on October 7, 2023, killing around 1,200 people and seizing more than 250 hostages.
The military campaign has devastated the tiny, crowded enclave, pushing nearly all its 2.3 million inhabitants from their homes and killing more than 53,000 people, according to Gaza health authorities.
Israel faces growing international pressure to resume ceasefire talks and allow food and medical supplies into Gaza. UN aid chief Tom Fletcher asked the Security Council this week if it would act to "prevent genocide".
Iraq's prime minister announced the creation of a fund to help reconstruct Arab states after war, with an initial pledge of $20 million each for Gaza and Lebanon, where swathes of the south were destroyed last year in an Israeli campaign against the Hezbollah group.
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Boston Globe
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Musk had regular contact with foreign officials, including Putin, as well as access to high-level U.S. government secrets as the chief executive of SpaceX and other government contractors. IT'S TUESDAY: Thanks for tuning in to NatSec Daily! This space is reserved for the top U.S. and foreign officials, the lawmakers, the lobbyists, the experts and the people like you who care about how the natsec sausage gets made. Aim your tips and comments at ebazail@ and follow Eric on X @ebazaileimil. While you're at it, follow the rest of POLITICO's global security team on X and Bluesky at: @dave_brown24, @HeidiVogt, @jessicameyers, @RosiePerper, @ @PhelimKine, @ak_mack, @felschwartz, @connorobrienNH, @paulmcleary, @reporterjoe, @JackDetsch, @samuelskove, @magmill95, @johnnysaks130 and @delizanickel THE NEW ADMINISTRATION PUZDER AND HELBERG'S DAY: Two of Trump's most prominent foreign policy nominees faced members of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee today, but Democrats gave them both an unexpectedly soft questioning. JACOB HELBERG, nominated to be undersecretary of State for Economic Growth, faced some questions over his investments and his ability to fairly advance U.S. interests in a role so focused on economic and business diplomacy. Sen. 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SYDNEY KAMLAGER-DOVE (D-Calif.), the top Democrat on the House Foreign Affairs subcommittee that addresses South Asia, told your host that above all, 'India and Pakistan are neighbors who must coexist' and argued that conflict between the two is detrimental to U.S. interests. She added that the U.S. should leave both countries to resolve the Kashmir dispute, though it should still de-escalate tensions as needed to avoid broader war. Broadsides BEIJING AND PRETORIA'S BOND: Chinese Defense Minister DONG JUN — who was a no-show at last week's Shangri-La Dialogue defense forum in Singapore — hasn't been arrested for suspected corruption after all. Instead, he was meeting with South African officials. 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What to Read — Isabel Kerchner, The New York Times: Finding God, and Nietzsche, in the Hamas Tunnels of Gaza — Kyodo News: Japan sees 1st simultaneous operations by China carriers in the Pacific — USA Today: 'Dictator-style military parade?' Other world leaders who show off tanks and missiles Tomorrow Today — German Marshall Fund, 6 a.m.: Brussels Forum 2025: Partnership Disrupted: How Can Transatlantic Cooperation Endure?' — Arab Center, 9:30 a.m.: Second annual Palestine Conference with the theme 'A Historic Juncture: Israel's Destruction of Gaza and the Palestinian Future.' — House Oversight and Government Reform Military and Foreign Affairs Subcommittee, 10 a.m.: Clearing the Path: Reforming Procurement to Accelerate Defense Innovation — House Armed Services Committee, 10 a.m.: Department of the Navy FY2026 Budget Request — Senate Appropriations Defense Subcommittee, 10 a.m.: A Review of the President's FY2026 Budget Request for the Department of Defense — Hudson Institute, 10 a.m.: Risky Business: How Chinese Companies Use Hong Kong to Evade U.S. Sanctions. — House Homeland Security Counterterrorism and Intelligence Subcommittee, 10:30 a.m.: The Rise of Anti-Israel Extremist Groups and Their Threat to U.S. National Security — Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, 11 a.m.: Understanding the Information Environment to Protect Democracy Thanks to our editors, Rosie Perper and Katherine Long, who never succeed in undermining our diplomatic efforts.
