Arab leaders and Iran’s President meeting in the Saudi capital have roundly condemned Israel’s actions in its war against Hamas in Gaza, as fears mount the conflict could draw in other countries.
The emergency meeting of the Arab League and the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) comes after Hamas militants’ bloody October 7 attacks that Israeli officials say left about 1,200 people dead, mostly civilians, and 239 taken hostage.
Africa Today News, New York reports that over 11,000 people have died as a result of Israel’s ensuing aerial and ground offensive, the majority of them were civilians and many of whom were children, according to the health ministry operated by Hamas.
The de facto ruler of the Gulf state, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, declared as the summit got underway on Saturday that host Saudi Arabia “confirms that it holds the occupation (Israeli) authorities responsible for the crimes committed against the Palestinian people.”
‘We are certain that the only way to guarantee security, peace and stability in the region is to end the occupation, siege and the settlements,’ he said of Israel’s actions in Gaza and the occupied West Bank.
Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, on his first trip to Saudi Arabia since the two countries mended ties in March, said Islamic countries should designate the Israeli army a ‘terrorist organisation’ for its conduct in Gaza.
Israel says it is out to destroy Hamas and blames the Palestinian armed group for the high death toll, accusing it of using civilians as ‘human shields’ — a charge Hamas denies.
The Arab League and the OIC, a 57-member bloc that includes Iran, were originally meant to meet separately.
Arab diplomats told AFP the decision to merge the meetings came after Arab League delegations failed to reach an agreement on a final statement.
Some countries, including Algeria and Lebanon, proposed responding to the devastation in Gaza by threatening to disrupt oil supplies to Israel and its allies as well as severing the economic and diplomatic ties that some Arab League nations have with Israel, the diplomats said.
However, at least three countries — including the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain, which normalised ties with Israel in 2020 — rejected the proposal, according to the diplomats who spoke on condition on anonymity.