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GCC, Russia Condemn Int’l Community's Failure to Stop War on Gaza

The foreign ministers of Gulf countries and Russia convene the GCC-Russia Joint Ministerial Meeting for Strategic Dialogue in Riyadh on Monday. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
The foreign ministers of Gulf countries and Russia convene the GCC-Russia Joint Ministerial Meeting for Strategic Dialogue in Riyadh on Monday. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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GCC, Russia Condemn Int’l Community's Failure to Stop War on Gaza

The foreign ministers of Gulf countries and Russia convene the GCC-Russia Joint Ministerial Meeting for Strategic Dialogue in Riyadh on Monday. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
The foreign ministers of Gulf countries and Russia convene the GCC-Russia Joint Ministerial Meeting for Strategic Dialogue in Riyadh on Monday. (Asharq Al-Awsat)

Qatari Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani stressed on Monday that joint cooperation between the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) and Russia has helped develop relations and coordinate stances on common causes. 

He hailed the continued strategic dialogue and coordination between the two sides on various issues. 

He made his remarks at the GCC-Russia Joint Ministerial Meeting for Strategic Dialogue in Riyadh on Monday.  

Al Thani noted the growing escalation in the region and unjustified violence as the suffering of the Palestinian people deepens. He noted the military escalation in the Red Sea region, warning that the entire stability of the region was under threat. 

He hoped regional and international partners would exert all forms of necessary pressure to impose a ceasefire in the war on Gaza and immediately kick off a comprehensive political process that would lead to a just, comprehensive and sustainable solution to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. 

Ending the war on Gaza is the first step in easing the tensions in the region and paving the way for permanent peace in the area, he remarked. 

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said cooperation between his country and the GCC was a priority for Russia’s foreign policy. 

He stressed that it was “impossible” to achieve peace in the Middle East without resolving the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. 

The international community “has failed in stopping the Israeli aggression and genocide in Gaza,” he added, describing the violence against the Palestinians as “unprecedented” in Arab-Israeli wars. 

Moreover, he held the United States primarily responsible for obstructing all international resolutions aimed at reaching a ceasefire in Gaza.  

Russia and the GCC, on the other hand, have exerted all efforts to end the fighting and establish an independent Palestinian state based on international resolutions, he went on to say. 

He warned that failure to resolve pending disputes in the region would lead to a broad regional war. 

GCC Secretary General Jasem Mohamed AlBudaiwi lamented that “many conflicts and crises plague our world today, seriously affecting its security and stability.” 

The GCC member states are making every possible effort to contribute to resolving disputes and settling conflicts through dialogue, negotiations and peaceful diplomatic means, he added. 

AlBudaiwi stressed that the ongoing Israeli violations against Palestinian civilians and the crimes committed by Israeli forces violate all human values and charters, including international law, humanitarian law, and relevant UN resolutions. 

“This unfortunate reality highlights the failure of the international community to find a comprehensive and permanent solution to this tragic issue,” he noted. 

AlBudaiwi urged the international community to take urgent, serious and decisive actions to protect civilians in Gaza and to support the State of Palestine's efforts to secure recognition from more countries, as well as to assist it in obtaining full membership in the UN and convene an international conference to achieve a comprehensive peace based on the two-state solution. 

The Gulf foreign ministers also held the GCC-India Joint Ministerial Meeting for Strategic Dialogue and a similar strategic dialogue with Brazil. 

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Gulf

How the Holy Sites Welcomed 122 Mn Visitors this Ramadan

The millions who visited the Grand Mosque reflect decades of dedicated effort and meticulous care (SPA)
The millions who visited the Grand Mosque reflect decades of dedicated effort and meticulous care (SPA)
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How the Holy Sites Welcomed 122 Mn Visitors this Ramadan

The millions who visited the Grand Mosque reflect decades of dedicated effort and meticulous care (SPA)
The millions who visited the Grand Mosque reflect decades of dedicated effort and meticulous care (SPA)

Following a highly successful 2025 Ramadan season (1446 AH), during which more than 122 million pilgrims and visitors were received at Islam’s two holiest sites, attention has turned to the factors behind this unprecedented achievement — and the decades of effort that made it possible.

The massive turnout at the Grand Mosque in Makkah is not a coincidence but the result of long-term planning and sustained investment.

Since the era of King Abdulaziz, the founder of modern Saudi Arabia, the Kingdom’s rulers have regarded their custodianship of the holy sites as a sacred duty.

Each monarch has contributed to the development and expansion of the holy cities, leaving behind a legacy that has shaped the pilgrim experience for generations.

Their commitment reflects Saudi Arabia’s role as guardian of Makkah and Madinah — the birthplace of Islam and the site of its most revered rituals — and underscores a national vision that places the service of pilgrims at the heart of state policy.

King Salman once summed it up succinctly: “The title of Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques is a great honor and a tremendous responsibility.” His words reflect a legacy that dates back to the Kingdom’s founder, King Abdulaziz, who famously declared, “We, the Al Saud, are not merely kings — we are bearers of a message.”

That message - rooted in the spiritual and historical significance of Makkah and Madinah - has deeply shaped the outlook of Saudi Arabia’s monarchs. It has imbued their rule with a sense of purpose and legitimacy, reinforcing their unique role in the Muslim world and positioning them as leaders of the global Islamic community.

King Abdulaziz’s commitment to the Grand Mosque in Makkah went far beyond construction and infrastructure - it extended to the very heart of its religious, educational and administrative affairs.

His comprehensive vision reshaped the Haram into a unified spiritual and intellectual center for Muslims around the world.

Among his most transformative reforms was the unification of prayer leadership. For centuries, prayers at the Grand Mosque were held separately according to the four Islamic schools of thought - Shafi‘i, Hanafi, Maliki and Hanbali - each with its own imam and designated prayer space.

King Abdulaziz abolished this system, dismantled the physical markers that separated the sects, and instituted a single imam for all, reinforcing unity among worshippers.

He also revitalized the mosque’s scholarly tradition by appointing a dedicated committee to oversee education.

New regulations were introduced to improve the conditions of teachers and ensure instruction across all four Sunni schools of thought.

At its peak, the Grand Mosque hosted more than 120 learning circles, covering subjects such as Islamic jurisprudence, Arabic language, literature, logic — and even astronomy — in a variety of languages.

More than 700 teachers from different ethnic and sectarian backgrounds contributed to this intellectual revival, restoring the Haram’s historical role as one of the Islamic world’s earliest and most important centers of learning.

To streamline operations, King Abdulaziz also established an administrative council to oversee services and day-to-day management of the mosque, delegating maintenance and construction responsibilities to the Ministry of Endowments.

King Abdulaziz passed away before he could oversee the first major expansion of the Grand Mosque in Makkah, but his sons carried the vision forward, launching a strategic project that spanned nearly a quarter of a century.

This foundational expansion—supervised by Kings Saud, Faisal and Khalid—marked a turning point in the development of the Haram and involved more than 55,000 engineers, experts, technicians, staff and laborers.

The expansion increased the mosque’s built-up area and surrounding plazas to nearly 200,000 square meters - more than six times its original size. At peak capacity, it could accommodate up to 400,000 worshippers. The project came at a cost of one billion Saudi riyals and signaled the beginning of a modern era in the mosque’s architectural and spiritual evolution.

As pilgrim numbers continued to grow, King Fahd bin Abdulaziz initiated a second phase of expansion, completed in 1993 (1413 AH).

The mosque’s total area, including surrounding courtyards, doubled to approximately 400,000 square meters, raising capacity to around 800,000 worshippers. The project, which also included upgraded infrastructure and services, cost more than 30 billion riyals.

A third and most ambitious expansion followed under the orders of King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz. It included the enlargement of the mosque itself, the Masa’a (the running area between Safa and Marwa), and the Mataf (the circumambulation area around the Kaaba).

This phase continued under King Salman and brought the total area of the mosque and its courtyards to 750,000 square meters, with total built-up space exceeding 1.4 million square meters.

Today, the Grand Mosque can host up to 2.5 million worshippers. The expanded facilities accommodate 105,000 pilgrims performing Tawaf (circumambulation) around the Kaaba and 120,000 people performing Sa’i between Safa and Marwa, setting new benchmarks in scale, design, and operational efficiency.