Arab FMs, EU Foreign Affairs Council Discuss Gaza War

Saudi Minister of Foreign Affairs Prince Faisal bin Farhan bin Abdullah at the Brussels meeting on Monday. (SPA)
Saudi Minister of Foreign Affairs Prince Faisal bin Farhan bin Abdullah at the Brussels meeting on Monday. (SPA)
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Arab FMs, EU Foreign Affairs Council Discuss Gaza War

Saudi Minister of Foreign Affairs Prince Faisal bin Farhan bin Abdullah at the Brussels meeting on Monday. (SPA)
Saudi Minister of Foreign Affairs Prince Faisal bin Farhan bin Abdullah at the Brussels meeting on Monday. (SPA)

The members of the Ministerial Committee assigned by the Joint Arab-Islamic Extraordinary Summit met in Brussels on Monday with European Union Foreign Affairs Council to discuss the war on Gaza.

Chaired by Saudi Minister of Foreign Affairs Prince Faisal bin Farhan bin Abdullah, the committee included Qatari Prime Minister and FM Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, Jordan's Deputy PM and FM Dr. Ayman Al-Safadi, and Egyptian FM Sameh Shoukry.

They discussed the dangerous developments in Gaza and the Israel’s ongoing military operation that is claiming the lives of innocent civilians, including the recent “appalling targeting of the tents of displaced Palestinians near the headquarters of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA)” in Rafah.

The Ministerial Committee “stressed the need for the international community to fulfill its responsibility to intervene immediately to stop the massacres committed by the Israeli forces and to stop the deepening of the unprecedented humanitarian catastrophe that the Palestinian people are experiencing.”

It reiterated the importance of creating serious political conditions for the establishment of a Palestinian state according to the 1967 border with East Jerusalem as its capital, and in line with the relevant international resolutions.

It expressed its rejection of “discussing the future of the Gaza Strip in isolation from the Palestinian issue.”

It called for “confronting all flagrant violations committed by the Israeli forces against the Palestinian people” and stressed the importance of holding the Israel accountable for the ongoing violations in the Gaza Strip and the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem.



Lebanon Joins Middle East Green Initiative

 Prime Minister Najib Mikati sits between Agriculture Minister Abbas Hajj Hassan and Environment Minister Nasser Yassin during the announcement (Office of the Prime Minister)
 Prime Minister Najib Mikati sits between Agriculture Minister Abbas Hajj Hassan and Environment Minister Nasser Yassin during the announcement (Office of the Prime Minister)
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Lebanon Joins Middle East Green Initiative

 Prime Minister Najib Mikati sits between Agriculture Minister Abbas Hajj Hassan and Environment Minister Nasser Yassin during the announcement (Office of the Prime Minister)
 Prime Minister Najib Mikati sits between Agriculture Minister Abbas Hajj Hassan and Environment Minister Nasser Yassin during the announcement (Office of the Prime Minister)

Lebanon’s caretaker Prime Minister announced that the country has joined the Middle East Green Initiative, launched by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to mitigate the impact of climate change on the region.

“This is an essential step for Lebanon, especially since our southern villages and towns have been exposed to significant environmental and agricultural damage due to Israeli attacks, which requires cooperation with all of Lebanon's friends,” a statement released by the Lebanese Council of Ministers quoted Mikati as saying.

Agriculture Minister Abbas Hajj Hassan welcomed Lebanon’s participation in the initiative, confirming that a high committee has been established to ensure the project’s sustainability and facilitate relevant cooperation.

He noted that the timing of the announcement “comes in light of the continued Israeli attacks on Lebanon, and this matter must be drawn to attention, especially since Israel is destroying very large areas, whether agricultural lands, fruit trees or forests.”

Environment Minister Nasser Yassin said that the Middle East Green Initiative has very important goals to plant 40 billion trees across the region and protect the Gulf and the Middle East from climate change, stop land degradation and desertification and find the means to adapt to future challenges.

The Lebanese Ministry of Agriculture estimates that more than 2.8 million square meters of forest and agricultural land were completely burned, while about 6.7 million square meters of agricultural and forest land were partially damaged as a result of Israel’s attacks and its use of internationally-banned incendiary munitions.