Arab, Muslim Leaders Call for Immediate End to Gaza War

Dozens of leaders including Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan, Qatar's Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani and Syrian President Bashar al-Assad attended the meeting.  (Photo by SPA)
Dozens of leaders including Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan, Qatar's Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani and Syrian President Bashar al-Assad attended the meeting. (Photo by SPA)
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Arab, Muslim Leaders Call for Immediate End to Gaza War

Dozens of leaders including Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan, Qatar's Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani and Syrian President Bashar al-Assad attended the meeting.  (Photo by SPA)
Dozens of leaders including Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan, Qatar's Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani and Syrian President Bashar al-Assad attended the meeting. (Photo by SPA)

Saudi Arabia and Muslim countries called on Saturday for an immediate end to military operations in Gaza, declaring at a joint Islamic-Arab summit in Riyadh that Israel bears responsibility for "crimes" against Palestinians.

Dozens of leaders including Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan, Qatar's Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani and Syrian President Bashar al-Assad attended the meeting.

Prince Mohammed said the kingdom affirms its "condemnation and categorical rejection of this barbaric war against our brothers in Palestine".

"We are facing a humanitarian catastrophe that proves the failure of the Security Council and the international community to put an end to the flagrant Israeli violations of international laws," he said in an address to the summit.

Fighting intensified overnight into Saturday near Gaza City's overcrowded hospitals, Palestinian officials said.

A baby died in an incubator at Gaza's largest hospital after it lost power, and a patient in intensive care was killed by an Israeli shell, the Palestinian health ministry said.

The war has upended traditional Middle East alliances as Riyadh has engaged more closely with Iran, pushed back against US pressure to condemn Hamas and put on hold its plans to normalise ties with Israel.

Erdogan called for an international peace conference to find a permanent solution to the conflict between Israel and Palestinians.

"What we need in Gaza is not pauses for a couple of hours, rather we need a permanent ceasefire," Erdogan told the summit.

The kingdom had been scheduled to host two extraordinary summits, the Organization of Islamic Cooperation and the Arab League, on Saturday and Sunday. The joint summit will replace the two gatherings in light of the "extraordinary" Gaza situation, the Saudi Foreign ministry said.

Hamas called on the summit to take "a historic and decisive decision and move to stop the Zionist aggression immediately".

"We call on Arab and Muslim leaders ... to put pressure on the American administration, which bears direct responsibility in the genocidal war that our people are facing in the Gaza Strip," a statement from the Palestinian militant group said.



Saudi Ambassador to UAE Decorates Sheikh Nahyan bin Saif Al Nahyan with King Abdulaziz Shah of 2nd Class

Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz. (SPA)
Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz. (SPA)
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Saudi Ambassador to UAE Decorates Sheikh Nahyan bin Saif Al Nahyan with King Abdulaziz Shah of 2nd Class

Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz. (SPA)
Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz. (SPA)

Upon the directives of Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Saudi Ambassador to the United Arab Emirates Sultan Al-Anqari decorated Sheikh Nahyan bin Saif Al Nahyan, former Ambassador of the United Arab Emirates to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, with the King Abdulaziz Sash of the Second Class.

According to SPA, this came in recognition of his outstanding efforts in strengthening and advancing the deep-rooted and historical relations between the two countries during his tenure in the Kingdom.

During the reception for Sheikh Nahyan at the embassy, the Saudi ambassador conveyed his best wishes for Sheikh Nahyan's continued success in his new role as Deputy Minister of State at the UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs.


Saudi Leadership Congratulates Head of Libya's Presidential Council on Independence Day

Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud and Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Crown Prince and Prime Minister. (SPA)
Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud and Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Crown Prince and Prime Minister. (SPA)
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Saudi Leadership Congratulates Head of Libya's Presidential Council on Independence Day

Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud and Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Crown Prince and Prime Minister. (SPA)
Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud and Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Crown Prince and Prime Minister. (SPA)

Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud sent on Wednesday a cable of congratulations to head of Libya's Presidential Council Mohamed Al-Menfi on his country's Independence Day.

King Salman wished him continued good health and happiness, and the government and people of Libya further security and stability.

Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Crown Prince and Prime Minister, sent Al-Menfi a similar cable on the occasion.


Saudi Arabia Condemns Attack on Pakistani Police

Pakistani security officials stand guard at a checkpoint on the eve of Christmas in Peshawar, Pakistan, 24 December 2025. (EPA)
Pakistani security officials stand guard at a checkpoint on the eve of Christmas in Peshawar, Pakistan, 24 December 2025. (EPA)
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Saudi Arabia Condemns Attack on Pakistani Police

Pakistani security officials stand guard at a checkpoint on the eve of Christmas in Peshawar, Pakistan, 24 December 2025. (EPA)
Pakistani security officials stand guard at a checkpoint on the eve of Christmas in Peshawar, Pakistan, 24 December 2025. (EPA)

Saudi Arabia condemned on Wednesday the attack against Pakistani police in the Karak area in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province.

A Foreign Ministry statement, said the Kingdom “categorically rejects of all forms of terrorism and extremism,” condemning “attempts to undermine the security and stability of Pakistan and its people.”

It extended its sincere condolences to the families of the victims, and to the government and people of Pakistan over the attack.

Suspected militants opened fire on a police vehicle in northwest Pakistan on Tuesday, killing five officers before fleeing, officials said, part of a surge in violence in the region bordering Afghanistan.

No group immediately claimed responsibility, but suspicion is likely to fall on the Pakistani Taliban, or TTP, which is separate from but aligned with Afghanistan’s Taliban government and has been blamed by authorities for previous attacks.

Pakistan has seen a steady rise in militant violence, which has strained relations with Afghanistan.