Israel’s war with Gaza, along with other regional crises, controls talks at the annual Arab League summit in Baghdad.
Iraqi Prime Minister Mohamed Shea Al Sudani said in his opening speech at the 34th Arab Summit on Saturday:
Iraq supported the creation of the “Arab Fund to Support Reconstruction Efforts” after the regional crisis, Sudani told the summit, adding that Iraq would donate $20 million to rebuild Gaza and another $20 million to Lebanon, which is also in conflict with Israel.
The Iraqi Prime Minister said Baghdad refused to “forced evacuation of Palestinians” and called for an end to “the Gaza genocide, attacks on the West Bank and occupied territories.”
“We have continued to call and call for serious and responsible Arab actions to save Gaza and reinvigorate UNRWA,” he said of the UN agency for Palestinian aid.
Saturday’s talks in the Iraqi capital come a day after President Donald Trump completed his Middle East tour, sparking hopes of a ceasefire and renewal of aid offerings to Gaza.
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas was the first Arab leader to arrive in Baghdad on Friday. However, diplomatic sources told AFP News Agency that most Gulf countries are represented at the summit at the ministerial level.
“The Massacre Unfolds in Gaza”
The chief of UN Antonio Guterres and Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez have been sharply criticising the Israeli massacre in Gaza – also guests at the summit.
“We now need a permanent ceasefire, an unconditional release of hostages, and a free flow of humanitarian assistance to end the lockdown,” Guterres said.
Spain’s Sanchez said Gaza’s humanitarian crisis must end “quickly and without delay.”
“Palestine and Spain are working on a new draft to be presented to the United Nations, requiring the UN to end the unjust humanitarian siege placed in Gaza and allow for the unconditional delivery of relief assistance to Gaza,” he said.
He also said, “There must be more pressure on Israel to end the massacre in Gaza by all possible means: tools available under international law.”
“And here, Spain would like to announce that it will present its proposal to the International Criminal Court General Assembly to examine Israel’s compliance with the provision of relief assistance to Gaza,” the Spanish Prime Minister added.
In March, Israel reached a ceasefire in Hamas in January, renewing a deadly attack across Gaza, forcing a series of food and other important items. Recently, Israel has stepped up its attacks. Tens of thousands of Palestinians are being forced to starve.
At the preparatory meeting for the Arab Federation Summit, Iraqi Foreign Minister Huad Hussein said he would try to approve the decision made at a meeting held in Cairo in March, and would support Gaza reconstruction as an alternative to Trump’s widely condemned proposal to take over the Enclave.
During his visit to Qatar, Trump reiterated Thursday that he hopes the US will “take” Gaza and turn it into a “free zone.” Earlier this year, he sparked a stir by declaring that the US would turn Gaza into a “Middle Eastern Riviera,” urging Arab leaders to plan to rebuild their territory at the Cairo summit.
Gaza’s Arab plan proposes rebuilding the Palestinian enclave without chasing away the 2.4 million inhabitants.
Are Syria and Iran also on the agenda?
In addition to Gaza, Arab officials are expected to discuss Syria as well. Syria had entered a new chapter in its history just six months ago after the collapse of longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad.
Earlier this week, Trump of Riyadh met Syrian interim president, President Ahmed al-Sharaa. Before their meeting, he also announced that US sanctions on Syria will significantly boost the Damascus government.
Arshara, who has been jailed for many years in Iraq on charges of belonging to al-Qaeda following the 2003 US-led invasion, holds a summit for Miss Baghdad after several powerful Iraqi politicians have expressed their opposition to his visit.
Syrian Foreign Minister Assad al-Shaibani represents Damascus instead.
Saturday’s summit is also at Iran’s ongoing nuclear association with the US.
Trump is pursuing diplomacy with Iran and is trying to stop the desire shared by many regional leaders of Israel’s threatened military strikes against Iran.
On Thursday, Trump said the deal was “closing” but by Friday he had warned that “something bad will happen” if Iranians don’t move fast.
Iraq recently regained similarities in normalcy after decades of catastrophic conflict and turmoil. Its leaders see the summit as an opportunity to project an image of stability.
Report from Baghdad, Al Jazeera’s Mahmoud Abdelwahheed said the summit was “very important” for Iraq.
“This is the first time the summit has been held in Iraq since 2012, and Iraq is accepting it as a credit to reclaim the rules as a player to bridge the gap between the Arab Federation’s member states,” he said.