Arab League Condemns Attack on Saudi Hospital, Arson at Oil Refinery in Sudan

A previous meeting of the Arab League (Asharq Al-Awsat)
A previous meeting of the Arab League (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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Arab League Condemns Attack on Saudi Hospital, Arson at Oil Refinery in Sudan

A previous meeting of the Arab League (Asharq Al-Awsat)
A previous meeting of the Arab League (Asharq Al-Awsat)

Arab League Secretary General Ahmed Aboul Gheit has condemned the attack on the Saudi hospital in El Fasher, Sudan, which claimed the lives of innocent civilians, describing it as a blatant violation of international and humanitarian law.
In a statement on Sunday, Aboul Gheit also denounced the arson of the Al-Jaili oil refinery north of Khartoum, labeling it a systematic attack on vital civilian infrastructure in Sudan.

According to SPA, he warned that such actions exacerbate the country’s dire economic conditions and deepen the suffering of its people.
Aboul Gheit stressed the importance of adhering to the guidelines set forth in the Jeddah Declaration for Ceasefire and Humanitarian Arrangements, which was signed in May 2023. This declaration calls for the safeguarding of public facilities—including medical centers, hospitals, and water and electricity infrastructure—and explicitly prohibits their use for military purposes.



France Says EU Will Lift Some Sanctions Against Syria After Assad’s Fall 

 People walk in front of the historic Hejaz train station in Damascus on January 26, 2025. (AFP)
People walk in front of the historic Hejaz train station in Damascus on January 26, 2025. (AFP)
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France Says EU Will Lift Some Sanctions Against Syria After Assad’s Fall 

 People walk in front of the historic Hejaz train station in Damascus on January 26, 2025. (AFP)
People walk in front of the historic Hejaz train station in Damascus on January 26, 2025. (AFP)

Some European Union sanctions against Syria are being lifted, France's foreign minister said on Monday, as part of a broader EU move to help stabilize Damascus after the ousting of President Bashar al-Assad in December.

EU foreign ministers were discussing the matter at a meeting in Brussels on Monday with the bloc's foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas having told Reuters that she was hopeful an agreement on easing the sanctions could be reached.

"Regarding Syria, we are going to decide today to lift, to suspend, certain sanctions that had applied to the energy and transport sectors and to financial institutions that were key to the financial stabilization of the country," French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said on arrival at the EU meeting in Brussels.

He added that France would also propose slapping sanctions on Iranian officials responsible for the detention of French citizens in Iran.

"I will announce today that we will propose that those responsible for these arbitrary detentions may be sanctioned by the European Union in the coming months," he said.

Assad, whose family had ruled Syria with an iron first for 54 years, was toppled by opposition forces on Dec. 8, bringing an abrupt end to a devastating 13-year civil war that had created one of the biggest refugee crises of modern times.

The conflict left large parts of many major cities in ruins, services decrepit and the vast majority of the population living in poverty. The harsh Western sanctions regime has effectively cut off its formal economy from the rest of the world.