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Madrid Meeting Statement Calls for Israel’s Full Withdrawal from Gaza

Spain's Minister of Foreign Affairs Jose Manuel Albares (C) addresses a press conference with (From L) European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borell, Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammed Mustafa, Saudi Arabia's Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan and Jordanian Foreign Minster Ayman Safadi following a meeting on a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, at the Foreign Affairs Ministry in Madrid on September 13, 2024. (Photo by Thomas COEX / AFP)
Spain's Minister of Foreign Affairs Jose Manuel Albares (C) addresses a press conference with (From L) European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borell, Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammed Mustafa, Saudi Arabia's Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan and Jordanian Foreign Minster Ayman Safadi following a meeting on a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, at the Foreign Affairs Ministry in Madrid on September 13, 2024. (Photo by Thomas COEX / AFP)
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Madrid Meeting Statement Calls for Israel’s Full Withdrawal from Gaza

Spain's Minister of Foreign Affairs Jose Manuel Albares (C) addresses a press conference with (From L) European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borell, Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammed Mustafa, Saudi Arabia's Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan and Jordanian Foreign Minster Ayman Safadi following a meeting on a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, at the Foreign Affairs Ministry in Madrid on September 13, 2024. (Photo by Thomas COEX / AFP)
Spain's Minister of Foreign Affairs Jose Manuel Albares (C) addresses a press conference with (From L) European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borell, Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammed Mustafa, Saudi Arabia's Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan and Jordanian Foreign Minster Ayman Safadi following a meeting on a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, at the Foreign Affairs Ministry in Madrid on September 13, 2024. (Photo by Thomas COEX / AFP)

Several Muslim and European countries meeting in Madrid have called for the implementation of the two-state solution in the Palestinian-Israeli crisis and for the full withdrawal of Israeli forces from the Gaza Strip, including from the Philadelphi corridor.

Other than the host Spain, in attendance were foreign ministers from Norway and Slovenia, European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell, Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Mustafa and members of the Arab-Islamic Contact Group for Gaza that includes Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Qatar, Jordan, Indonesia, Nigeria and Türkiye.

A statement issued following Friday’s meeting said: “We fully support the ongoing mediation efforts undertaken by Egypt, Qatar and the United States, and we reject all actions aiming at hindering this mediation process” to end the war in Gaza.

“We are calling repeatedly for an immediate and permanent ceasefire in Gaza and the release of hostages and detainees. We also call for the reestablishment of the full control of the Palestinian Authority over the Rafah crossing and the rest of the borders and the full withdrawal of the Israeli occupying forces from Gaza, including from the Philadelphi corridor,” said the statement.

It said that “the international community must take active steps to implement the two-state solution, including universal recognition of the State of Palestine, and its admission as a full member of the United Nations.”

The conferees also called for the urgent need to deliver humanitarian assistance to Palestinians in Gaza.

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Arab World

Syria’s New Rulers Name Abu Qasra as Defense Minister

Head of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham and Syria's de facto leader Ahmed al-Sharaa sits next to Murhaf Abu Qasra, who according to an official source has been appointed as Defense Minister in Syria's interim government, in Damascus, Syria in this handout image released on December 21, 2024. (Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham/Handout via Reuters)
Head of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham and Syria's de facto leader Ahmed al-Sharaa sits next to Murhaf Abu Qasra, who according to an official source has been appointed as Defense Minister in Syria's interim government, in Damascus, Syria in this handout image released on December 21, 2024. (Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham/Handout via Reuters)
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Syria’s New Rulers Name Abu Qasra as Defense Minister

Head of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham and Syria's de facto leader Ahmed al-Sharaa sits next to Murhaf Abu Qasra, who according to an official source has been appointed as Defense Minister in Syria's interim government, in Damascus, Syria in this handout image released on December 21, 2024. (Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham/Handout via Reuters)
Head of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham and Syria's de facto leader Ahmed al-Sharaa sits next to Murhaf Abu Qasra, who according to an official source has been appointed as Defense Minister in Syria's interim government, in Damascus, Syria in this handout image released on December 21, 2024. (Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham/Handout via Reuters)

Syria's new rulers have appointed Murhaf Abu Qasra, a leading figure in the opposition which toppled Bashar al-Assad, as defense minister in the interim government, an official source said on Saturday.

Abu Qasra, who is also known by the nom de guerre Abu Hassan 600, is a senior figure in the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) group which led the campaign that ousted Assad this month. He led numerous military operations during Syria's revolution, the source said according to Reuters.

Syria's de facto leader Ahmed al-Sharaa discussed "the form of the military institution in the new Syria" during a meeting with armed factions on Saturday, state news agency SANA reported.

Abu Qasra during the meeting sat next to Sharaa, also known by the nom de guerre Abu Mohammed al-Golani, photos published by SANA showed.

Prime Minister Mohammed al-Bashir said this week that the defense ministry would be restructured using former opposition factions and officers who defected from Assad's army.

Bashir, who formerly led an HTS-affiliated administration in the northwestern province of Idlib, has said he will lead a three-month transitional government. The new administration has not declared plans for what will happen after that.

Earlier on Saturday, the ruling General Command named Asaad Hassan al-Shibani as foreign minister, SANA said. A source in the new administration told Reuters that this step "comes in response to the aspirations of the Syrian people to establish international relations that bring peace and stability".

Shibani, a 37-year-old graduate of Damascus University, previously led the political department of the opposition’s Idlib government, the General Command said.

Sharaa's group was part of al-Qaeda until he broke ties in 2016. It had been confined to Idlib for years until going on the offensive in late November, sweeping through the cities of western Syria and into Damascus as the army melted away.

Sharaa has met with a number of international envoys this week. He has said his primary focus is on reconstruction and achieving economic development and that he is not interested in engaging in any new conflicts.

Syrian opposition fighters seized control of Damascus on Dec. 8, forcing Assad to flee after more than 13 years of civil war and ending his family's decades-long rule.

Washington designated Sharaa a terrorist in 2013, saying al-Qaeda in Iraq had tasked him with overthrowing Assad's rule in Syria. US officials said on Friday that Washington would remove a $10 million bounty on his head.

The war has killed hundreds of thousands of people, caused one of the biggest refugee crises of modern times and left cities bombed to rubble and the economy hollowed out by global sanctions.