Regional
Arab-Islamic summit to warn Israeli attacks threaten normalisation of ties, draft resolution shows
U.S. President Donald Trump has signalled unhappiness over the Israeli attack, saying it did not advance Israeli or U.S. goals, calling Qatar a close ally working hard to broker peace.
Leaders of Arab and Islamic states will warn that Israel’s attack on Qatar and other “hostile acts” threaten coexistence and efforts to normalise ties in the region, according to a draft resolution to be put before an Arab-Islamic summit on Monday, Reuters reported.
The summit is being convened in Doha in a show of support for Qatar in the wake of the Israeli attack targeting leaders of the Palestinian militant group Hamas who reside in the Gulf state.
The September 9 attack, which Hamas says killed five of its members but not its leadership, has prompted U.S.-allied Gulf Arab states to close ranks, adding to strains in ties between the United Arab Emirates and Israel, which normalised relations in 2020.
An excerpt of the draft resolution seen by Reuters said “the brutal Israeli attack on Qatar and the continuation of Israel’s hostile acts including genocide, ethnic cleansing, starvation, siege, and colonizing activities and expansion policies threatens prospects of peace and coexistence in the region.”
These actions threaten “everything that has been achieved on the path of normalizing ties with Israel including current agreements and future ones”, according to the draft, which was drawn up by foreign ministers meeting ahead of the summit.
Israel has been widely accused of committing genocide against Palestinians in Gaza, including by the world’s biggest group of genocide scholars, during its nearly two-year campaign in the Palestinian enclave that has killed more than 64,000 people, according to local authorities, read the report.
Israel rejects the accusation, citing its right to self-defence following the October 7, 2023, attack by Hamas militants that killed 1,200 people and resulted in the capture of 251 hostages, according to Israeli figures.
Hitting back at global condemnation of the attack, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has kept up pressure on Qatar over the presence of Hamas leaders on its soil, warning Doha on Wednesday to either expel Hamas officials or “bring them to justice, because if you don’t, we will”.
Netanyahu said on Saturday that getting rid of Hamas leaders living in Qatar would remove the main obstacle to releasing hostages still held by the group in Gaza and ending the war.
Qatar, a key mediator in the Gaza conflict, has accused Israel of sabotaging chances for peace and Netanyahu of practicing “state terrorism”. A member of Qatar’s internal security forces was among those killed.
Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani said on Sunday that Israel’s actions would not stop Doha’s mediation efforts with Egypt and the United States, Reuters reported.
U.S. President Donald Trump has signalled unhappiness over the Israeli attack, saying it did not advance Israeli or U.S. goals, calling Qatar a close ally working hard to broker peace.
He also said eliminating Hamas was “a worthy goal”. After the attack, he told Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani that “such a thing will not happen again on their soil”.
The UAE was the most prominent of several Arab states to normalise ties with Israel in 2020 under the Abraham Accords, brokered with U.S. backing during Trump’s first term in office.
The deal normalising ties between the UAE and Israel marked the first time an Arab state had established relations with Israel since Jordan’s 1994 peace agreement, read the report.
Egypt was the first Arab state to normalize ties with Israel in 1979, after signing a peace treaty.
The UAE on Friday summoned the deputy Israeli ambassador over the attack and subsequent remarks by Netanyahu which it described as hostile.
It has described Qatar’s stability as an “inseparable part of the security and stability of the states of the Gulf Cooperation Council”. The council includes Saudi Arabia, which has said it will not establish ties with Israel without the creation of a Palestinian state.
Regional
Iran sent nuclear proposal to the US via Qatar, senior Iranian official tells Reuters
Iran has sent the United States a nuclear proposal via Qatar, to be discussed only after Washington meets Tehran’s seven demands, a senior Iranian official told Reuters on Thursday.
The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the US was reviewing the proposal but declined to provide further details.
Mediators have intensified efforts to end the war between Iran and the United States amid fears it could reignite after the US midterm elections, with Trump on Tuesday declining to rule out a resumption of combat operations after the vote and Iran planning wider retaliation if war resumes.
Iran’s top security official Mohsen Rezaei had said earlier on Thursday, during a visit to Russia: “On the issue of diplomacy, we have announced seven conditions to the Americans. As long as they do not execute our seven conditions, we will neither open the Strait of Hormuz nor have negotiations”.
Iran has demanded the lifting of US sanctions, the release of frozen Iranian assets and war reparations, among other conditions, while Washington has said nuclear issues must be part of any initial negotiations.
The US and Israel attacked Iran on February 28, and Iran responded with strikes on Israel and Gulf states that host US bases. Conflict also erupted in Lebanon between Iran-backed Hezbollah and Israel, and more recently spread to Yemen, from where the Iran-aligned Houthis have struck energy facilities, airports and other targets in Saudi Arabia.
Regional
Iran says US voted ‘No to War’ after Republican midterm losses
The comments came after US President Donald Trump acknowledged that the war with Iran and rising petrol prices had contributed to the Republicans’ poor election performance.
Regional
Saudi, Syrian defence ministries sign cooperation agreement
Saudi Arabia and Syria signed a cooperation agreement between the two countries’ defense ministries on Wednesday, Saudi state news agency SPA reported, as Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthi group continues its missile and drone attacks on the kingdom.
The agreement was signed during a visit by Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa to Riyadh, where he met Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. It was their second meeting in Saudi Arabia in less than a month, according to Reuters.
No details were provided on what the agreement entails. Reuters reported last month that Syria was carefully weighing providing military assistance to Saudi Arabia amid the kingdom’s escalating war against the Houthis in Yemen.
A Syrian diplomat said at the time that any request for military cooperation or exchange of expertise “would take place exclusively through official channels and within the framework of the bilateral agreements governing relations between our two brotherly countries.”
Saudi Arabia has been requesting assistance far and wide, from the US to Europe and the Middle East, for both defensive and offensive support in a renewed war against the Houthis.
The two countries also signed several other agreements during Sharaa’s visit to Saudi Arabia. The kingdom has been providing financial assistance to Syria and played a key role in re-establishing Damascus’ ties with world powers after the overthrow of Bashar al-Assad.
The Saudi Fund for Development signed six agreements with Syria’s Finance Ministry on Wednesday for the provision of concessional development loans worth over $403 million to support development and service sectors in Syria, the Syrian ministry said.
-
Sport4 days agoAfghanistan futsal team thrash Panama 5-0 in flying start to Dakar Youth Olympics
-
Sport4 days agoATN signs deal to broadcast Afghanistan Futsal Premier League seasons 5 and 6
-
Sport5 days agoAfghanistan target T20I clean sweep against Zimbabwe in Sharjah
-
World3 days agoUS carries out ‘defensive’ strikes on Iran’s Qeshm Island, officials say
-
Sport4 days agoAfghanistan achieve their highest ICC Men’s ODI team ranking
-
Latest News4 days agoTrump claims he could have won Afghanistan war in three weeks
-
Latest News5 days agoPakistan welcomes US offer to facilitate dialogue with Afghanistan, while Kabul rejects Islamabad’s allegations
-
World4 days agoTrump White House maps path to govern without Congress if Democrats win: report
