Baghdad Invites Neighbors to Regional Summit, Assad Participation Unclear

Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa Al-Kadhimi. (AFP file photo)
Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa Al-Kadhimi. (AFP file photo)
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Baghdad Invites Neighbors to Regional Summit, Assad Participation Unclear

Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa Al-Kadhimi. (AFP file photo)
Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa Al-Kadhimi. (AFP file photo)

Baghdad has stepped up its preparations for a key summit for regional leaders it plans on holding by the end of August. Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa Al-Kadhimi has sent state representatives to deliver formal invitations to attend the conference.

Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein has handed Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan an official invitation to attend the summit.

Last week, Planning Minister Khaled Battal Al-Najm handed a written letter from Kadhimi to the Emir of Kuwait Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah that included an invitation to attend the conference, according to the Iraqi news agency.

On Saturday, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi received the Iraqi Defense Minister Lieutenant-General Juma Inad Saadoun.

On Sunday, Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan held talks with his Iraqi counterpart in Riyadh.

They reviewed aspects of Saudi-Iraqi relations and ways to support and enhance them to serve the two countries’ interests.

The two sides also discussed strengthening joint bilateral coordination to contribute to regional stability and preserve international peace and security.

Hussein handed Prince Faisal an invitation from Kadhimi for Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz to attend the summit in Iraq.

“Iraq hopes to expand the scope of the regional summit and has sent out invitations to European countries and the US,” an official Iraqi source told Asharq Al-Awsat, adding that Baghdad is looking forward to the participation of Egypt, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar.

As to whether Syrian President Bashar al-Assad would be invited, the source, who requested anonymity, said they don’t have any information on the matter.

However, they reaffirmed that discussing the situation in Syria is one of the topics slated on the conference’s agenda.

Last June, Baghdad hosted the tripartite summit between Iraq, Egypt and Jordan, within the framework of what Kadhimi called “the New Orient.”



Gazans Must Return Home, EU Plans to Tell Israel 

A Palestinian man and two girls stand a mid of the rubble of homes, destroyed by the Israeli army's air and ground offensive against Hamas in in Bureij refugee camp, central Gaza Strip, Monday, Feb. 17, 2025. (AP)
A Palestinian man and two girls stand a mid of the rubble of homes, destroyed by the Israeli army's air and ground offensive against Hamas in in Bureij refugee camp, central Gaza Strip, Monday, Feb. 17, 2025. (AP)
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Gazans Must Return Home, EU Plans to Tell Israel 

A Palestinian man and two girls stand a mid of the rubble of homes, destroyed by the Israeli army's air and ground offensive against Hamas in in Bureij refugee camp, central Gaza Strip, Monday, Feb. 17, 2025. (AP)
A Palestinian man and two girls stand a mid of the rubble of homes, destroyed by the Israeli army's air and ground offensive against Hamas in in Bureij refugee camp, central Gaza Strip, Monday, Feb. 17, 2025. (AP)

The EU plans to tell Israel next week that Palestinians uprooted from their Gaza homes should be ensured a dignified return and that Europe will contribute to rebuilding the shattered territory, according to a document seen by Reuters.

That echoes Arab positions but conflicts with President Donald Trump's stated aim for the US to take over the shattered coastal strip and rebuild it into a "Riviera of the Middle East" while Gazans emigrate to other nations.

The EU, which has been a major aid provider to Palestinians, is to outline its position to Israeli officials in talks in Brussels on February 24 as part of the EU-Israel Association Council, the first such session since 2022.

A document outlining the draft EU position emphasizes both Europe's commitment to Israel's security and its view that "displaced Gazans should be ensured a safe and dignified return to their homes in Gaza".

"The EU will actively contribute to a coordinated international effort to early recovery and reconstruction in Gaza," it said, also calling for full humanitarian access.

"The EU deeply deplores the unacceptable number of civilians, especially women and children, who have lost their lives, and the catastrophic humanitarian situation notably caused by the insufficient entry of aid into Gaza, in particular in the North."

Israel launched its assault on Gaza after fighters from the Palestinian group Hamas stormed southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killing 1,200 people and taking more than 250 hostages, according to Israeli tallies.

More than 48,000 people have been killed in Gaza, according to Palestinian health officials. Much of the enclave has been laid waste with most of its 2.3 million pre-war population displaced multiple times, humanitarian agencies say.

"The EU strongly opposes all actions that undermine the viability of the two-state solution," the document added, referring to its position that Palestinians should have an independent homeland alongside Israel.