The sixth death of a Palestinian inmate in Israeli prisons since October 7

On Sunday, the ministerial committee appointed by the Arab-Islamic summit launched an international initiative to stop the war in Gaza, while foreign ministers from member states headed to China, at the start of a tour that included several key countries .

Diplomats and experts who spoke with Asharq Al-Awsat count “on the committee and its role in persuading Western countries to change their position in support of Israel and push them to put pressure on it to stop the aggression that has lasted the longest.” of a month against Gaza.”

The summit, which was held in Riyadh on November 11, decided to “assign the Foreign Ministers of Saudi Arabia – as president of the Arab and Islamic summits – and each of Jordan, Egypt, Qatar, Turkey, Indonesia, Nigeria and Palestine, and the secretaries general of the Arab League and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation “Initiate immediate action on behalf of all member states to formulate an international move to stop the war in Gaza, and to press for the launch of serious action and a real political process to achieve lasting and global peace in accordance with approved international references”.

The Permanent Representative of Palestine to the League of Arab States, Ambassador Muhannad Al-Aklouk, appreciated the start of the committee’s work and told Asharq Al-Awsat that he “hopes that its action will be quick and effective to stop the ongoing crimes of the Israeli occupation”.

While Professor of Political Science at Cairo University, Dr. Ahmed Youssef Ahmed, the start of the committee’s work “is a sort of confirmation of the follow-up given to the decisions of the summit and of the seriousness in addressing its decisions, and that I’m not just a letter on paper.” He told Asharq Al-Awsat: “The committee will be more effective in influencing the positions of various European countries, especially because the positions of some of them have already changed,” citing the rather good positions of Ireland, Spain, Belgium, Norway. , and Portugal towards the Palestinian question, according to him.

The political science professor underlined “the importance of working on the Russia-China axis”, explaining that “the two countries, despite their positive positions, do not go beyond the diplomatic level, which requires an attempt to push them to adopt more severe measures.” positions”.

Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan announced in an official briefing that “China will be the first stop” during the ministerial committee tour.

The tour targets the capitals of a number of permanent members of the Security Council, with the aim of advancing the process to stop the ongoing war in the Gaza Strip and address the deteriorating humanitarian conditions in the Strip, according to a previous official statement. by Ambassador Ahmed Abu Zeid, spokesperson for the Egyptian Foreign Ministry, during which he explained that “the foreign ministers. The participants will have meetings with the political leaders and foreign ministers of the countries included in the tour, with the aim of pushing on need for an immediate ceasefire, introducing humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip in a sustainable way and insisting on the need to address the roots and causes of the crisis through a serious political process culminating in the creation of an independent Palestinian state.

For his part, the Permanent Representative of Palestine to the Arab League stressed “the importance of every minute in light of the continuing aggression.” Al-Aklouk underlined the importance of “choosing the target countries and the language of the discourse, as well as the tools of pressure, political or legal, that have an important impact”.

He expressed the hope that “the committee will move effectively, with sufficient and adequate means of pressure on the countries towards which it is directed, with the aim of achieving an immediate ceasefire and a war of annihilation against the Palestinian people, in preparation for work to end the occupation.” He added: “Action must be urgent, rapid and effective. Arab and Islamic countries know what the impact is and can do a lot. It was clear from the leaders’ speeches at the summit that they are aware of the war of annihilation in which they are the Palestinian people exposed.”

The resolution issued by the summit calls on member states of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation and the League of Arab States “to exert diplomatic, political and legal pressure and take any deterrent measures to stop the crimes of the colonial occupation authorities against humanity . “

The resolution stated “the absolute rejection and collective response to any attempted relocation, forced displacement, exile or deportation of the Palestinian people, whether within the Gaza Strip or the West Bank, considering it a red line and a war crime.”

While Professor of Political Science at Cairo University, Dr. Mustafa Kamel Al-Sayyed, the ministerial committee’s action is now “delayed, and was expected to begin before Israel invaded the northern Gaza Strip,” and “expressed hope that the committee will succeed in its mission.” Al-Sayyid told Asharq Al-Awsat: “In light of the continued aggression, it will not be enough for the committee to rely on strong logical arguments, and there must be tools of pressure to influence the targeted countries.”

For his part, Ambassador Rakha Ahmed Hassan, former Egyptian Deputy Foreign Minister, told Asharq Al-Awsat: “The committee is a diplomatic attempt to persuade countries with influence in the Security Council to take a decision to force Israel to a ceasefire”, expressing his hope that “the committee will succeed in its aim and convince the United States to put pressure on Tel Aviv to stop the aggression”.

As for Al-Aklouk, he stressed that “Arab and Islamic countries have different tools of pressure, especially since many of these countries have diplomatic relations with Israel.”

However, Ahmed stressed that “the committee is executive and non-decisional, since it was formed based on a decision of the Arab-Islamic summit, which means that any decision of political or economic pressure must first be approved by the summit,” expressing the hope that “the commission intends to develop proposals in this regard if it deems it possible. Regarding the American position, he said: “In light of America’s clear prejudice against Israel, it is difficult to convince him to change his position,” but at the same time he underlined “the importance of working on this.”

The Arab-Islamic summit called on all countries to stop exporting to the occupation authorities weapons and ammunition that are used to kill the Palestinian people and destroy their capabilities and infrastructure, reaffirming adherence to peace as a strategic option, putting an end to the Israeli occupation and resolving the Arab-Israeli conflict in accordance with international law and relevant resolutions of international legitimacy.

Here, Ambassador Al-Aklouk highlights “the need to start implementing the rest of the summit’s decisions, including the call to stop arms exports to Israel, and to use tools of political and diplomatic pressure to achieve this objective” . He said: “There are around 350 war deaths every day, including 150 children, and the death toll since the start of the aggression is approaching 12,000 deaths, including almost 5,000 children, which requires action rapid.”