Saudi-Palestinian Summit to Confirm Rejection of US Decision

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. Reuters
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. Reuters
TT

Saudi-Palestinian Summit to Confirm Rejection of US Decision

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. Reuters
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. Reuters

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas is due to meet Saudi King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman today and assure the rejection of the US decision to move the US embassy to Jerusalem and recognize it as the capital of Israel.

The visit also comes as a verification of the Saudi preliminary stance on the Palestinian cause and Jerusalem and rejection of all these changes.

Ambassador of Palestine to Saudi Arabia Bassem Abdullah al-Agha affirmed in a phone call with Asharq Al-Awsat that President Abbas's visit is an affirmation of the Saudi commitment to the Palestinian cause and Jerusalem, which will be the main focus of the Saudi-Palestinian summit talks in Riyadh today.

“The US decision on Jerusalem made a fuss although King Salman advised, alerted and warned the US side of announcing this,” Agha said, adding that Trump has killed the peace process and violated UN resolutions and directions.

Agha pointed out that the Palestinian people are acting against the decision, dictating their conscience, patriotism, Islamism and Arabism, explaining that some "described this move as a Palestinian revolution, but it is actually the world’s revolution against Trump and his Israeli counterpart Netanyahu."

“We wanted peace, but Trump and Netanyahu don’t,” Agha said. Amidst that, the Saudi positions are “preliminary and principled as Jerusalem is the heartbeat of King Salman and his Crown Prince.”
We have seen over the years Saudi Arabia's positions in the UN, UNESCO, Geneva and all international institutions, and the Kingdom's stances have always been with Palestine and Jerusalem.

The Kingdom considers the Palestinian cause an internal and external issue at the core of its policy as it has never stopped protecting the Palestinian people and cause from enemies.

The Palestinian-Saudi relations will never change, Agha said, pointing out that Saudi Arabia has never stopped supporting Palestine politically and financially.



Tunisia Groups Urge Inclusion of Rejected Candidates in Poll

FILE PHOTO: Tunisian President Kais Saied attends a signing ceremony with Chinese President Xi Jinping (not pictured) at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, China May 31, 2024. REUTERS/Tingshu Wang/Pool/File Photo/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Tunisian President Kais Saied attends a signing ceremony with Chinese President Xi Jinping (not pictured) at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, China May 31, 2024. REUTERS/Tingshu Wang/Pool/File Photo/File Photo
TT

Tunisia Groups Urge Inclusion of Rejected Candidates in Poll

FILE PHOTO: Tunisian President Kais Saied attends a signing ceremony with Chinese President Xi Jinping (not pictured) at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, China May 31, 2024. REUTERS/Tingshu Wang/Pool/File Photo/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Tunisian President Kais Saied attends a signing ceremony with Chinese President Xi Jinping (not pictured) at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, China May 31, 2024. REUTERS/Tingshu Wang/Pool/File Photo/File Photo

A petition signed by prominent Tunisians and civil society groups was published on Saturday urging that rejected candidates be allowed to stand in the October 6 presidential election, Agence France Presse reported.

Signed by 26 groups including Legal Agenda, Lawyers Without Borders and the Tunisian Human Rights League, it welcomed an administrative court decision this week to reinstate three candidates who had been disqualified.

They are Imed Daimi, who was an adviser to former president Moncef Marzouki, former minister Mondher Zenaidi and opposition party leader Abdellatif Mekki.

The three were among 14 candidates barred by the Tunisian election authority, ISIE, from standing in the election.

If they do take part, they will join former parliamentarian Zouhair Maghzaoui and businessman Ayachi Zammel in challenging incumbent President Kais Saied.

Saturday's petition was also signed by more than 180 civil society figures including Wahid Ferchichi, dean of the public law faculty at Carthage University.

It called the administrative court "the only competent authority to adjudicate disputes related to presidential election candidacies.”

The petition referred to statements by ISIE head Farouk Bouasker, who on Thursday indicated that the authority will soon meet to finalize the list of candidates, "taking into consideration judicial judgements already pronounced.”

This has been interpreted as suggesting the ISIE may reject new candidacies if they are the subject of legal proceedings or have convictions.

The administrative court's rulings on appeals "are enforceable and cannot be contested by any means whatsoever,” the petition said.

It called on the electoral authority to "respect the law and avoid any practice that could undermine the transparency and integrity of the electoral process.”