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COP27 Attendees Anticipate Saudi Plan for Saving Earth

Participants at the COP27 summit in Sharm el-Sheikh are seen in front of the Saudi pavilion at the conference hall. (AFP)
Participants at the COP27 summit in Sharm el-Sheikh are seen in front of the Saudi pavilion at the conference hall. (AFP)
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COP27 Attendees Anticipate Saudi Plan for Saving Earth

Participants at the COP27 summit in Sharm el-Sheikh are seen in front of the Saudi pavilion at the conference hall. (AFP)
Participants at the COP27 summit in Sharm el-Sheikh are seen in front of the Saudi pavilion at the conference hall. (AFP)

Attendees of the UN’s climate change summit (COP27), underway at Egypt's Sharm el-Sheikh, are patiently awaiting the activities of Saudi-led green initiatives that aim to deliver a green future and scale up regional climate action through cooperation.

In its second edition, the Middle East Green Initiative (MGI) Summit will convene on Nov. 7, while the two-day Saudi Green Initiative (SGI) forum will be held on Nov. 11- 12.

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman announced the two high-profile green forums on Oct. 20.

The MGI aims to reduce regional carbon emissions by more than 10% of global contributions. It also focuses on planting 50 billion trees across the region as part of the world’s largest afforestation program.

Through the MGI, Saudi Arabia aims to bring together regional stakeholders to achieve more than a 60% reduction in emissions from regional hydrocarbon production.

The initiative operates through six programs and work centers. These include a cooperative platform to accelerate the implementation of the Circular Carbon Economy, a regional hub for climate change, a regional cloud seeding program, a regional center for early storm warning, a regional center for carbon extraction, use and storage, and a regional center for sustainable development of fisheries.

Saudi Arabia is also spearheading two regional initiatives: A “clean fuel solutions for cooking” initiative that will benefit more than 750 million people worldwide, and a regional investment fund for Circular Carbon Economy technology solutions.

The MGI Summit, in its second edition, will convene an elite lineup of climate experts and thought leaders to discuss the progress that has been made towards achieving the climate targets announced by the Kingdom last year.

The theme of this year’s forum, “From ambition to action”, reflects Saudi Arabia’s determination to turn these targets into reality by catalyzing collective action to confront climate challenges that impact the entire world.

Representatives of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), Arab and African countries, and other international partners will attend the summit.

“The Saudi initiative is very inspiring and ambitious, especially since the (Arab) region is located between two major deserts on two continents, the Empty Quarter and the Great Desert,” several COP27 attendees told Asharq Al-Awsat.

The participants pointed to the Arab world being one of the regions most affected by climate change on the planet and stressed the importance of initiatives like the MGI.

“It is good to follow up on programs, plans, and new developments in such commendable initiatives, which we hope will serve as an example in the rest of the world. If we see success, this will be a practical prescription to save the planet,” they said.

As a Saudi national initiative, the SGI aims to improve the quality of life and protect future generations by accelerating the journey of green transformation in the Kingdom, reducing and eliminating emissions, and addressing climate change.

The initiative is a natural extension of Saudi Arabia’s national transformation plan, Vision 2030. It works on the participation of all segments of society in drawing a green future for the country, by activating the role of the public and private sectors and enabling citizens to contribute to achieving ambitious national goals.

As a global energy producer, Saudi Arabia has always affirmed its commitment to expanding climate action while maintaining economic and social development.

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Arab World

Israeli Military Changes Initial Account of Gaza Aid Worker Killings

Palestinians mourn medics, who came under Israeli fire while on a rescue mission, after their bodies were recovered, according to the Red Crescent, at Nasser hospital in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip March 31, 2025. (Reuters)
Palestinians mourn medics, who came under Israeli fire while on a rescue mission, after their bodies were recovered, according to the Red Crescent, at Nasser hospital in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip March 31, 2025. (Reuters)
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Israeli Military Changes Initial Account of Gaza Aid Worker Killings

Palestinians mourn medics, who came under Israeli fire while on a rescue mission, after their bodies were recovered, according to the Red Crescent, at Nasser hospital in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip March 31, 2025. (Reuters)
Palestinians mourn medics, who came under Israeli fire while on a rescue mission, after their bodies were recovered, according to the Red Crescent, at Nasser hospital in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip March 31, 2025. (Reuters)

The Israeli military has provided new details that changed its initial account of the killing of 15 emergency workers near the southern Gaza city of Rafah last month but said investigators were still examining the evidence.

The 15 paramedics and emergency responders were shot dead on March 23 and buried in a shallow grave where their bodies were found a week later by officials from the United Nations and the Palestinian Red Crescent. Another man is still missing.

The military initially said soldiers had opened fire on vehicles that approached their position "suspiciously" in the dark without lights or markings. It said they killed nine fighters from Hamas and Islamic Jihad who were travelling in Palestinian Red Crescent vehicles.

But video recovered from the mobile phone of one of the dead men and published by the Palestinian Red Crescent showed emergency workers in their uniforms and clearly marked ambulances and fire trucks, with their lights on, being fired on by soldiers.

The only known survivor of the incident, Palestinian Red Crescent paramedic Munther Abed, also said he had seen soldiers opening fire on clearly marked emergency response vehicles.

An Israeli military official said late on Saturday the investigators were examining the video and conclusions were expected to be presented to army commanders on Sunday.

Israeli media briefed by the military reported that troops had identified at least six of the 15 dead as members of the groups. However, the official declined to provide any evidence or detail of how the identifications were made, saying he did not want to share classified information.

"According to our information, there were terrorists there but this investigation is not over," he told reporters at the briefing late on Saturday.

The UN and the Palestinian Red Cross have demanded an independent inquiry into the killing of the paramedics.

Red Crescent officials have said 17 paramedics and emergency workers from the Red Crescent, the Civil Emergency service and the UN had been dispatched to respond to reports of injuries from Israeli air strikes.

Apart from Abed, who was detained for several hours before being released, another worker is still missing.

OPENED FIRE

The military official said initial findings from the investigation showed troops had opened fire on a vehicle at around 4 a.m., killing two members of the Hamas internal security forces, and taking another prisoner, who the official said had admitted under interrogation to being in Hamas.

As time passed, several vehicles passed along the road until, at around 6 a.m., he said troops received word from aerial surveillance that a suspicious group of vehicles was approaching.

"They feel this is another incident like what happened at 4 a.m. and they opened fire," the official said.

He said aerial surveillance footage showed the troops were at some distance when they opened fire, and he denied reports that the troops handcuffed at least some of the paramedics and shot them at close range.

"It's not from close. They opened fire from afar," he said. "There's no mistreatment of the people there."

He said the soldiers had approached the group they had shot, identifying at least some of them as fighters. However, he did not explain what evidence had prompted the assessment.

"And in their eyes, they had an encounter with terrorists, that is a successful encounter with terrorists."

He said the troops had informed the UN of the incident on the same day and initially covered the bodies with camouflage netting until they could be recovered. UN officials did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.

"There was no incident where the Israeli army tried to cover up. On the contrary, they called the UN immediately."

Later, when the UN did not immediately come to take the bodies, the soldiers covered them with sand to stop animals from getting at them, the official said.

He said the vehicles were pushed out of the way by a heavy engineering vehicle to clear the road but he could not explain why the vehicles were crushed by the engineering vehicle and then buried.