Saudi Arabia, Russia Stress Need to Stop Military Operations in Palestinian Territories

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman greets Russian President Vladimir Putin before a meeting in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia December 6, 2023.  Sputnik/Aleksey Nikolskyi/Kremlin via REUTERS
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman greets Russian President Vladimir Putin before a meeting in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia December 6, 2023. Sputnik/Aleksey Nikolskyi/Kremlin via REUTERS
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Saudi Arabia, Russia Stress Need to Stop Military Operations in Palestinian Territories

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman greets Russian President Vladimir Putin before a meeting in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia December 6, 2023.  Sputnik/Aleksey Nikolskyi/Kremlin via REUTERS
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman greets Russian President Vladimir Putin before a meeting in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia December 6, 2023. Sputnik/Aleksey Nikolskyi/Kremlin via REUTERS

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud and Russian President Vladimir Putin have expressed their deep concern about the humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza.

In a joint statement published on Thursday after they met a day earlier in Riyadh, the Crown Prince and Putin “stressed the need to stop military operations in the Palestinian territories, and the need to protect civilians in accordance with international law and international humanitarian law.”

They called for enabling international humanitarian organizations to play their role in providing humanitarian and relief aid to the Palestinian people, especially the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), and to support their efforts.

The two sides stressed security and stability in Palestine could only be achieved through the implementation of international resolutions related to the two-state solution in order to ensure the creation of appropriate conditions for peaceful coexistence and economic development, and to enable the Palestinian people to achieve their legitimate rights to establish an independent, sovereign Palestinian state on the 1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital.



GCC Welcomes Agreement between Yemen Govt, Houthis

Hans Grundberg, the U.N. special representative for Yemen, speaks during an interview with The Associated Press in Cairo, Egypt, on Aug. 28, 2023. (AP)
Hans Grundberg, the U.N. special representative for Yemen, speaks during an interview with The Associated Press in Cairo, Egypt, on Aug. 28, 2023. (AP)
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GCC Welcomes Agreement between Yemen Govt, Houthis

Hans Grundberg, the U.N. special representative for Yemen, speaks during an interview with The Associated Press in Cairo, Egypt, on Aug. 28, 2023. (AP)
Hans Grundberg, the U.N. special representative for Yemen, speaks during an interview with The Associated Press in Cairo, Egypt, on Aug. 28, 2023. (AP)

Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Secretary-General Jasem Mohamed Albudaiwi welcomed on Wednesday the agreement between the legitimate Yemeni government and Iran-backed Houthi militias to de-escalate the situation with regard to the Yemeni banking sector and airlines.

The agreement was announced by the United Nations Secretary-General's Special Envoy to Yemen, Hans Grundberg, on Tuesday.

Albudaiwi expressed the GCC's support for all regional and international efforts and the efforts led by the UN special envoy aimed at achieving peace and security in Yemen.

The announcement underscores the importance the international community attaches to the Yemeni crisis, he added, hoping the agreement will pave the way for Yemeni parties to start the political process, under UN auspices, to reach a comprehensive political solution that achieves security and stability in the country.

He reiterated the GCC's continued support and full solidarity with Yemen, its government and people, and its keenness to encourage all efforts to de-escalate and maintain stability in order to reach peace.