Saudi Arabia convenes Arab Islamic Summit

Saudi Arabia has announced to hold a joint Arab-Islamic follow-up summit in the Kingdom on November 11, 2024 to discuss the continued Israeli aggression on the Palestinian territories and Lebanon, in addition to the current developments in the region.

This is in line with the directives of Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman and in continuation of the efforts made by Crown Prince and Prime Minister Mohammed bin Salman (MBS) in coordination with leaders of other Arab and Islamic countries. The summit will be held as an extension of the joint Arab-Islamic summit held in Riyadh on November 11, 2023.

Saudi Arabia reaffirmed its condemnation and denunciation of the crimes and violations that are being perpetrated by the Israeli occupation authorities against the Palestinian people, apart from the continuing Israeli attacks and violations against the people of Lebanon.

This is in light of the Kingdom's follow-up of the current developments in the region, as well as the continued sinful Israeli aggression on the occupied Palestinian territories, and its expansion to include the Lebanese Republic in an attempt to undermine its sovereignty and territorial integrity, and the serious repercussions of this aggression on the security and stability of the region, the Saudi Press Agency said in a statement.

Saudi foreign minister calls for reforming OIC

Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal Bin Farhan reaffirmed Saudi Arabia's call for restructuring, developing, and reforming the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) to tackle regional and international challenges.

He called for accelerating joint Islamic action with bold political will to reform the organization and position it as a leading intergovernmental entity, second only to the UN.

Representing Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman, Prince Faisal led the Saudi delegation at the 15th Islamic Summit Conference in Banjul, Gambia, under the theme: "Promoting Unity and Solidarity Through Dialogue for Sustainable Development."

He expressed regret over the failure of the UN Security Council and the international community to halt Israeli attacks on Palestinians.

"The Palestinian cause has remained a priority for the OIC since its inception," Prince Faisal stated.

The OIC has consistently been the voice and conscience of the Islamic nation, advocating for the Palestinian people and striving to end the injustice they face.

He reiterated the Kingdom's call for an immediate and lasting ceasefire, safe humanitarian corridors, and the fulfillment of Palestinians' legitimate rights, including their right to self-determination and an independent state.

“It is unfortunate to witness the failure of the Security Council and the international community to halt unprecedented Israeli attacks, which have escalated through indiscriminate shelling, destruction of hospitals, schools, shelters, and infrastructure in Gaza, leaving thousands of innocent civilians, including children, women, and the elderly, as victims,” Prince Faisal said.

Saudi Arabia has tirelessly worked, in collaboration with other nations, to protect civilians and provide relief in Palestine, he emphasized.

Prince Faisal highlighted Saudi Arabia’s efforts during its previous OIC presidency to strengthen Islamic cooperation, unite positions, and respond positively to common threats.

The Kingdom has taken a strong stance against provocative acts towards Islamic symbols, desecration of the Qur’an, acts of hatred, racism, and Islamophobia.

Saudi Arabia continues its efforts to unite Muslims and strengthen the OIC’s role in conflict resolution, regional and global security, he added.

On Yemen, Prince Faisal stressed the importance of supporting peace efforts for a comprehensive political solution to alleviate the suffering of the Yemeni people and to support their economic and developmental aspirations.

He also emphasized the importance of Syria's stability, unity, and security, and efforts to combat terrorism, armed militias, and drug smuggling, creating a safe environment for Syrian refugees' return.

Regarding Sudan, the minister underscored the importance of Sudan’s unity and sovereignty, as well as the need to preserve state institutions to protect the country's resources and avoid a dark future.

He also highlighted Libya’s right to elect a unified national government that enjoys local and international legitimacy, ensures security and stability, combats lawlessness and terrorism, and removes militias and mercenaries, allowing Libya to regain its influential role in the Arab and Islamic region.

Prince Faisal reiterated Saudi Arabia’s consistent stance on Somalia’s sovereignty, territorial integrity, and regional safety in accordance with international law.

He expressed hope that the UN Security Council's decision to lift the arms embargo on Somalia would contribute to peace, stability, and security in the country.

Has Hamas committed horrendous mistake?

Countries of all stripes – whether developed or underdeveloped, democratic or authoritarian – have been known to commit strategic military miscalculations. The United States, for example, won decisive wars against developed countries such as Germany and Japan, but blundered in wars against much lesser powers like Vietnam in the 1970s and Iraq and Afghanistan after the 9/11 attacks.

Strategic military miscalculation usually results in the collapse of authoritarian regimes. The decision of Argentina’s military junta to invade the Falkland Islands in 1982 led to its defeat in the war against Britain and the fall of General Leopoldo Galtieri’s regime.

Iraq’s invasion of Kuwait in 1990 led to a military disaster for the Iraqi army following Operation Desert Storm, paving the way for the 2003 US invasion of the country and the fall of Saddam Hussein’s regime.

Successful countries eventually accept the need to revamp their political systems, initiate democratic reforms and champion world peace.

It took Germany, whose army fought exceptionally well operationally and tactically, two world wars to metamorphose.

It took Japan’s disastrous defeat precipitated by the Pearl Harbor attack to convince Tokyo to change. Under the US direction, the two countries transformed into full-fledged democracies.

Since the turn of the 20th century, political leaders, heads of state and political movements in the Arab world have also shown a propensity for massive miscalculation.

Hamas October 07 attack is a prime example, but it was precipitated by several other cases that have shaped the region since World War I.

Hamas’ rationale for last month’s attack stemmed from its conviction that Israel, with United States backing and Arab acquiescence, intended to eliminate any possibility of Palestinian statehood.

By taking Israeli hostages, it also intended to secure the release of thousands of Palestinian prisoners being held in Israeli jails, knowing that Israel has in the past been willing to conduct prisoner swaps.

In 2011, Israel released more than 1,000 Palestinian prisoners to secure the release of Gilad Shalit, an Israeli soldier detained by Hamas for more than five years.

 However, Hamas failed to consider the likelihood that Israel’s war Cabinet would launch an unprecedented air and ground campaign following its attack, the scale of which recalled the genocidal horrors ingrained in Israel’s collective consciousness.

Hamas expected Israel to plead for negotiations to secure the freedom of some 240 Israeli captives. Images from Gaza on October 07 showed Hamas guerrillas ecstatic about the possibility of a massive prisoner swap. But Israel instead unleashed a withering military campaign.

Moreover, Hamas did not inform Iran and its regional allies in advance about its plans. It assumed Hezbollah would join the fighting from southern Lebanon and that Iraqi militias in Syria would engage Israel from the Golan Heights.

Hezbollah’s unenthusiastic involvement in the war has cost it far more casualties than Israel and did not relieve even the slightest pressure on embattled Hamas.

Hamas was left stunned by its allies’ tepid response; having previously believed its attack would transform the Middle East and pave the path toward establishing a Palestinian state.

An extraordinary summit of Arab and Islamic countries held last month in Saudi Arabia resulted only in generic statements of support for the Palestinians and demands for the immediate cessation of hostilities.

Hamas counted on the outbreak of a third intifada, but Israel’s preemptive raids against West Bank activists ruled out this possibility as well.

Arab leaders, engrossed in a distorted worldview, tend to see the world through the prism of their domestic politics, often failing to comprehend the complexity of international relations.

Arabs in high office are autocrats who do not answer to anybody else, driving them to make fateful decisions.

Many Arab leaders live in echo chambers, making decisions premised on faulty assumptions, inattentive to how their antagonists might respond. The consequences have played out time and again, including today in Gaza.

Palestinian Red Crescent thanks Saudi Arabia

The Executive Director of Palestinian Red Crescent Dr. Bashar Murad thanked Saudi Arabia, represented by the King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Center (KSrelief), for its humanitarian role in providing relief to the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.

Dr. Murad explained that there were many violations against hospitals and health centers carried out during the current crisis that the Gaza Strip is going through, in addition to the direct targeting of ambulances.

As a result of these attacks, more than 30 ambulances have been out of service so far, in addition to facing difficulty in transporting casualties, he said.

The executive director indicated that they had received a group of ambulances provided by Saudi Arabia, represented by KSrelief, to support the ambulance fleet in Gaza.

As for the Saudi aid that was sent to the Gaza Strip, which included various food, medical, and shelter materials, Dr. Murad confirmed that they sent it quickly to the neediest areas in the Strip.

He also added that they sent medical materials and supplies provided by the Kingdom to the Ministry of Health and hospitals working in the field to strengthen the health system in the southern regions of the Gaza Strip.

The executive director drew attention to the meetings held in Riyadh between representatives of the Palestinian Red Crescent Society and officials of the KSrelief to discuss the urgent needs for relief for the people of the Strip, especially the southern regions, noting that the number of displaced people there exceeded 1 million.

Dr. Murad praised the support provided via land and sea bridges by Saudi Arabia, which was offered through the King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Center.

BRICS an evidence of failure of Modi Doctrine

According to, Alan Paul Varghese, an independent foreign affairs and geopolitical analyst based in New Delhi, it became clear that India continues its alignment with the West and Israel.

At the BRICS Plus extraordinary meeting hosted by South Africa on the conflicts in West Asia, it became clear that India continues its alignment with the West and Israel. While most of the members reiterated how Israel’s settler colonialism is the root cause of the conflict, Indian external affairs minister S. Jaishankar stood firm on blaming Hamas. He also stated that there can be no compromise to terrorism.

The Modi doctrine of diplomacy for the past nine years has stagnated India’s internal reputation and aspirations. Narendra Modi had skipped the online meeting due to the election campaigns in poll-bound states.

Though the officials stated that Modi was preoccupied with the campaign schedules, it is obvious that the outcome of the extraordinary meeting was anticipated.

In a close examination of recent diplomatic events by India, one can categorically see how the Modi doctrine is failing to capture its promised achievements.

While the economy is trailing and seldom benefitted through trade agreements, the only resort of Narendra Modi and Jaishankar was their self-projection as the leader of the Global South.

It is noteworthy that the extraordinary meeting succeeded the Voice of Global South Summit which had references to ongoing genocide in Palestine.

BRICS Plus comprising of mostly countries from the global south has proved that India is isolated for its stand on the Israel-Palestine issue. This isolation has a serious impact on the future geo-political prospects of India.

In evaluating the BRICS extraordinary meeting Iran urged the members to cease economic and military interactions with Israel. Vladimir Putin who attended the meeting criticized the US monopolization of mediation efforts. He urged the international community to unite in an effort to achieve a speedy de-escalation and a ceasefire in Gaza, as well as a political solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and added that the BRICS nations and regional actors could play a leading role in this process.

This can be a possible indication of Argentina’s disassociation from BRICS as Milie, a far-right economist is a proactive supporter of dollarizing the economy. 

Xi Jinping in his address said “The root cause of the Palestinian-Israeli situation is the fact that the right of the Palestinian people to statehood, their right to existence, and their right of return have long been ignored. It has been often reiterated that the only viable way to break the cycle of Palestinian-Israeli conflict lies in the two-state solution, in the restoration of the legitimate national rights of Palestine, and in the establishment of an independent State of Palestine. There can be no sustainable peace and security in the Middle East without a just solution to the question of Palestine. China calls for early convening of an international peace conference that is more authoritative to build international consensus for peace and work toward an early solution to the question of Palestine that is comprehensive, just, and sustainable.”

Saudi Arabia called for the cessation of arms and ammunition supplies to Israel.

Argentina’s newly elected President Javier Milie condemned Hamas and demanded that Israel must adhere to international humanitarian law.

India had three diplomatic events before this extraordinary meeting. The ICC World Cup, Voice of Global South Summit, and ministerial dialogue between India and Australia.

During the World Cup Modi tried for cricket diplomacy by inviting his counterparts of the UK and Australia. Though Rishi Sunak expressed his readiness, due to some reasons he didn’t make his presence.

A sideline discussion with Anthony Albanese prior to the 2+2 ministerial dialogue was expected to boost talks in favour of India. But Albanese prioritized the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation Summit over his QUAD partner.

The core weakness of Modi doctrine – neglecting the neighbours was visible in the failed innings of cricket diplomacy. In the interview given to The Hindu, Australian finance minister Penny Wong in reply to a question on whether India’s urge to take action against the Khalistan group was fulfilled, she said “ ….In relation to that I’d say is we respect your sovereignty. And we also are very clear about the line between peaceful protests, freedom of expression, and violence and vandalism.”

She has already clarified that the cooperation with India is for the balancing of power to counter China. The failed cricket diplomacy, Australia’s stand on the India-Canada standoff, and the statements by Wong proved how India has turned into a vassal of the Western countries under the Modi doctrine.

The current stand of the union government has isolated India in the Global South. Meanwhile, China is on the verge of emerging as the new dominant player in West Asian geopolitics. In the background of the Saudi-Iran peace deal that was brokered by China, Arab countries held direct talks with Beijing.

The officials holding meetings with China were from Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Egypt, Indonesia, Palestinian authorities, and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, among others. Succeeding this South Africa, one of the strongest allies of China in the African continent hosted the virtual meeting of BRICS. Joining the dots, China is set to emerge in the role of mediator. Arab countries met Chinese diplomats to give a strong message to the USA too.

With the BRICS extraordinary meeting, China was able to successfully entrap the United States between the Zionist pressure for continuous aggression and the Middle East pressure for a ceasefire. One will not be mistaken to assume that China is working to diminish the outreach of US in West Asia.

Though, a joint declaration was not issued from the statements of various leaders except Jaishankar all others demanded a ceasefire and held Israel’s settler colonialism as the reason for the conflict. They endorsed the initiatives of Arab countries for establishing peace. South African parliament has voted for the closure of the Israel Embassy in Pretoria.

Undoubtedly India has trailed from its glorious legacy of being the voice of global south. China emphasized on the strategy that India forgot during the Modi era. In the past, India’s diplomacy focused on creating a New Economic World Order based on the liberation of Asian, African, and Latin American countries from neo-colonialism. The Non-Aligned Movement led by India comprised countries that gained independence from colonial regimes.

These were not powerful countries but had the potential of multiple dimensions. It was never the service or submission to power that helped India and NAM to develop their influences. China has built deep economic cooperation with African and Asian post-colonial countries than with the Western countries.

Bharath Karnad assessed Modi’s foreign policy as “bowing to the powerful and bullying the weak.” Such policies only result in the rupture of the country’s power.

In an article written by Rahul Nath Choudhary in East Asia Forum, he noted that the majority of free trade agreements signed by India failed to cater better results. In the period between 2017 and 2022, India’s exports to its FTA partners increased by 31%, while its imports increased by 82%. India’s FTA utilization remains very low at around 25%, while utilization for developed countries typically is 70% to 80%. 

The alternative for this – bilateral agreements and multilateral forums can be achieved if India could revamp another NAM based on multipolarity and de-dollarization. If the escalation continues in West Asia the future of India’s Middle East Corridor will be forever at a crossroad. Even a peace treaty based on the intervention of China and BRIC countries will bring the same fate.

 

Al-Aqsa Storm reaction to 75 years of Israeli occupation

Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister for Political Affairs Ali Bagheri Kani has said that the massive anti-Israeli operation carried out by Hamas was a logical response by the Palestinian people to the ongoing Israeli occupation.

During a news conference at the Iranian embassy in Bangkok on Sunday, Bagheri Kani told reporters that Hamas’s October 07 Operation Al-Aqsa Strom was a legitimate reaction to Israel’s brutality against Palestinians.  

“The crisis in the occupied Palestinian territories did not erupt as the result of the developments that took place on October 07. The operation launched by Hamas was the Palestinians’ natural and legitimate reaction to the 75-years-long occupation of their land by the Zionist regime,” he said.

He also expressed worry about the fate of foreign captives, particularly Thai nationals, imprisoned in Gaza as a result of the Hamas operation. 

According to Bagheri Kani, Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian took the subject of Thai detainees seriously during his recent travels to Lebanon and Qatar, where he spoke with key officials of Palestinian resistance groups.

Bagheri Kani met a variety of high-ranking Thai officials during his brief visit in Bangkok, including Wan Muhamad Noor Matha, the president of the National Assembly, Anutin Charnvirakul, the deputy prime minister, and Chatchai Bangchuad, the acting chairman of the National Security Council.

The two parties emphasized the long-standing friendly relations between the two countries and the necessity of fostering bilateral connections, particularly in the areas of business and tourism.

Following seven weeks of bombing, a four-day truce in the Gaza Strip has allowed Hamas to free 26 Israeli prisoners, including women and children, along with 14 Thai nationals and a Filipino on two separate occasions.

78 Palestinian women and children were released from Israeli jails in response.

Iran assumed a key mediation role in the recent conflict in Gaza, successfully facilitating the release of 10 Thai nationals who were captured and brought to the Gaza Strip during the Hamas operation on October 07. 

Following a request from Thailand's government, Iran offered its good offices for the captives' release, resulting in the unconditional freedom of the individuals. 

Over a dozen Thai captives are still held in the besieged Gaza Strip. Iran has reportedly supplied Bangkok with vital information regarding their current conditions.

Since October 07, Iran has embarked on an extensive diplomatic campaign aimed at averting the loss of innocent lives in the region.

The Iranian foreign minister undertook three regional tours, engaging with leaders in Qatar, Lebanon, Iraq, and Turkey to discuss the ongoing situation.

 

Secret US Base in Israel

According to a report, two months before Hamas attacked Israel, the Pentagon awarded a multi million dollar contract to build US troop facilities for a secret base it maintains deep within Israel’s Negev desert, just 20 miles from Gaza. Code-named ‘Site 5’, the longstanding US base is a radar facility that monitors the skies for missile attacks on Israel. 

On October 07, however, when thousands of Hamas rockets were launched, Site 512 saw nothing — because it is focused on Iran, more than 700 miles away.

The US Army is quietly moving ahead with construction at Site 512, a classified base perched atop Mt. Har Qeren in the Negev, to include what government records describe as a ‘life support facility’: military speak for barracks-like structures for personnel.

Though President Joe Biden and the White House insist that there are no plans to send U.S. troops to Israel amid its war on Hamas, a secret US military presence in Israel already exists. And the government contracts and budget documents show it is evidently growing. 

The US$35.8 million US troop facility, not publicly announced or previously reported, was obliquely referenced in an August 02 contract announcement by the Pentagon. Though the Defense Department has taken pains to obscure the site’s true nature — describing it in other records merely as a “classified worldwide” project — budget documents reviewed by The Intercept reveal that it is part of Site 512.

“Sometimes something is treated as an official secret not in the hope that an adversary would never find out about it but rather because the U.S. government, for diplomatic or political reasons, does not want to officially acknowledge it,” Paul Pillar, a former chief analyst at the CIA’s counterterrorism center who said he had no specific knowledge of the base, told The Intercept.

“In this case, perhaps the base will be used to support operations elsewhere in the Middle East in which any acknowledgment that they were staged from Israel, or involved any cooperation with Israel, would be inconvenient and likely to elicit more negative reactions than the operations otherwise would elicit.”

Rare acknowledgment of the US military presence in Israel came in 2017, when the two countries inaugurated a military site that the US government-funded Voice of America deemed “the first American military base on Israeli soil.”

Israeli Air Force’s Brig. Gen. Tzvika Haimovitch called it “historic.” He said, “We established an American base in the State of Israel, in the Israel Defense Forces, for the first time.” 

A day later, the U.S. military denied that it was an American base, insisting that it was merely a living facility for US service members working at an Israeli base. 

The US military employs similar euphemistic language to characterize the new facility in Israel, which its procurement records describe as a life support area.

Such obfuscation is typical of US military sites the Pentagon wants to conceal. Site 512 has previously been referred to as a “cooperative security location”: a designation that is intended to confer a low-cost, light footprint presence but has been applied to bases that, as The Intercept has previously reported, can house as many as 1,000 troops.

Site 512, however, wasn’t established to contend with a threat to Israel from Palestinian militants but the danger posed by Iranian mid-range missiles.

The overwhelming focus on Iran continues to play out in the US government’s response to the Hamas attack. In an attempt to counter Iran — which aids both Hamas and Israel’s rival to the north, Hezbollah, a Lebanese political group with a robust military wing, both of which are considered terror groups by the US — the Pentagon has vastly expanded its presence in the Middle East.

Following the attack, the US doubled the number of fighter jets in the region and deployed two aircraft carriers off the coast of Israel. 

“My speculation is that the secrecy is a holdover from when US presidential administrations tried to offer a pretense of not siding with Israel.”

Top Republicans like Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell have nonetheless castigated Biden for his purported “weakness on Iran.”

While some media accounts have said Iran played a role in planning the Hamas attack, there have been indications from the US intelligence community that Iranian officials were surprised by the attack.

The history of the US–Israel relationship may be behind the failure to acknowledge the base, said an expert on overseas US military bases.

“My speculation is that the secrecy is a holdover from when US presidential administrations tried to offer a pretense of not siding with Israel in the Israeli-Palestinian and Israeli-Arab conflicts,” David Vine, a professor of anthropology at American University, told The Intercept.

“The announcement of US military bases in Israel in recent years likely reflects the dropping of that pretense and a desire to more publicly proclaim support for Israel.”

 

Pro Israeli remarks trigger walkout at IPU meeting

The inaugural speech at the 147th Inter-Parliamentary Union Assembly in Luanda, Angola, drew an angry reaction from several Muslim delegations that deemed President Duarte Pacheco’s remarks in favor of the Israeli regime unjust and misleading.

On Monday the president, who is wrapping up his three-year term, kicked off his speech by commenting on “Israel’s right to defend itself”, referring to the regime’s heavy and relentless bombardment of Gaza in recent days.

The attacks have so far resulted in the death of more than 5,000 people, with children making up half of the casualties. Israel has also begun a full siege of the territory not allowing any food, water, fuel, and medicine inside Gaza. 

Delegations from South Africa, Iran, Kuwait, Palestine, Algeria, and some other Muslim countries reportedly walked out of the opening ceremony after a member of the Iranian delegation shouted “Israel is a terrorist entity” to protest the president’s remarks. 

The Parliamentary delegations returned to the ceremony once the speech was over and once again voiced their strong opposition to the rhetoric against the Palestinian Resistance. 

After the incident, Pacheco’s past interactions with the regime were brought to the limelight. The IPU president, who is supposed to represent 179 parliaments from around the world, visited the occupied territories in 2021 a year after being elected. 

During an interview with Israeli media, the official expressed regret that the IPU has chosen to condemn the regime at some instances. “I regret that there are such condemnations against Israel, because I don’t believe that they contribute to a spirit of dialogue,” he said while talking to the Jewish News Syndicate. 

Pacheco was also called a true friend of Israel during a meeting with the Knesset speaker Mickey Levy. 

 

Western media accused of biased reporting

Accusations of biased media coverage in the United States and Europe regarding the Israeli-Palestinian conflict have resurfaced as critics claim that mainstream media outlets are allegedly favoring Israel. The debate over media objectivity has gained renewed attention due to the ongoing conflict in the Middle East.

In recent years, concerns about biased reporting on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict have been a topic of discussion among media watchdog groups, activists, and some public figures. Critics argue that media outlets in the United States and Europe tend to present a narrative that is perceived as sympathetic to Israel.

Critics point to the choice of language used in news reports, stating that terms like clashes or conflict may downplay the power imbalance between Israel and Palestine. Some believe that the situation should be more accurately described as an occupation.

Allegations suggest that the media frequently gives more airtime and attention to Israeli government officials, experts, and analysts, while Palestinian voices and perspectives are underrepresented or portrayed less prominently.

Critics argue that some media outlets occasionally portray Palestinians in a dehumanizing light, which can contribute to a negative biased against them.

Some argue that media coverage often lacks a comprehensive historical context, making it challenging for the audience to understand the root causes of the conflict.

This renewed discussion on media bias has led to increased public scrutiny of news outlets. Advocacy groups and concerned citizens are calling for more transparency and accountability in media reporting on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Additionally, some politicians and lawmakers have weighed in on the issue, urging media organizations to provide a more balanced perspective. They have proposed measures to ensure that all voices are heard and that news coverage reflects the complexities of the situation.

The accusations of media bias favoring Israel in US and European media have reignited debates about the role of the press in shaping public perception and influencing international relations.

As the Israeli-Palestinian conflict continues to be a highly contentious and closely-watched global issue, discussions on media coverage and objectivity are likely to persist, with calls for more inclusive and balanced reporting gaining momentum.

 

Iran offers to host OIC meeting on Palestine

Iran has officially expressed readiness to host an extraordinary meeting of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC).

The Islamic Republic of Iran’s Permanent Mission in the Organization of Islamic Cooperation in Jeddah sent an official letter on Tuesday to the secretariat of the organization, announcing Iran’s readiness to host an emergency meeting of the foreign ministers of the organization on Palestine, the Iranian foreign ministry said.

The mission also conveyed Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian’s gratitude to OIC Secretary General Hissein Brahim Taha for exchanging views during their constructive negotiations on the developments in Palestine.

The mission officially said the Islamic Republic of Iran is fully ready to host the extraordinary ministerial meeting of the OIC.

The following is text of the official letter by Iran’s mission to the OIC:

Following the phone call on Monday, October 9, 2023, between the Honorable Foreign Minister of the Islamic Republic of Iran, Hossein Amir Abdollahian, with the Honorable Secretary General of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), Hissein Brahim Taha, on the beastly crimes being perpetrated by the Zionist regime against Palestinian civilians, especially in the we would like to express Amir Abdollahian’s gratitude for the opportunity provided to exchange views with the honorable secretary general and his constructive negotiations with him on the issue.

The foreign minister of the Islamic Republic of Iran expressed his deep hatred and concern about the criminal actions by the Zionist regime against the Palestinian people as vivid examples of war crimes and genocide, and announced that the Islamic Republic of Iran strongly condemns the massive military and savage moves by the Zionist regime of Israel in Palestine that have so far led to the martyrdom and injury of hundreds of children of the Palestinian nation, especially infants, kids and women.

Amir Abdollahian thanked Hissein Brahim Taha for his timely condemnation of the regime’s actions and emphasized that the apartheid and child-killing regime is responsible in this context.

He stressed that considering the high sensitivity of the case, the OIC should swiftly deal with the important matter at the highest possible level and informed the secretary general of the Islamic Republic of Iran’s full readiness to host the emergency meeting of the Council of Foreign Ministers of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation in Tehran, in the first agreed opportunity.

It was decided that the proposal would be submitted to the secretariat in writing.

Hereby, we would be grateful if the OIC secretariat immediately starts the necessary consultations with the member states of the organization on the proposal by the Islamic Republic of Iran’s government and announce the final result to the mission in order to advance the procedures.

Two state solution blocks Saudi-Israel peace deal, says Pompeo

It could be impossible to establish a Saudi Arabia-Israel peace deal if a prerequisite is the Palestinians receiving or accepting a Palestinian state, according to former US secretary of state Mike Pompeo.

Pompeo helped orchestrate the Abraham Accords under former US president Donald Trump, which normalized relations between Israel and the United Arab Emirates, Morocco, and Bahrain.

Pompeo told The Jerusalem Post that it is impossible to imagine a two-state solution with the current Palestinian leadership who is underwriting terrorism, taking money from Iran, paying citizens to kill Israelis.

“It is very difficult to imagine how one would strike a deal with the very leaders that have rejected every reasonable offer with which they have been presented.”

Pompeo spoke to the Post the day after Saudi Arabia’s first ambassador to the Palestinian Authority, Nayef al-Sudairi, visited Ramallah. During his visit, al-Sudairi emphasized that creating a Palestinian state with east Jerusalem as its capital would be a fundamental cornerstone in any prospective agreement with Israel.

“The Arab Peace Initiative is the central point of any upcoming agreement,” al-Sudairi said.

Saudi Arabia Peace Initiative was initially ratified by the Arab League in 2002 and subsequently reaffirmed in 2007 and 2017. It requires a complete withdrawal of Israel from the West Bank and Golan Heights, establishing a Palestinian state with eastern Jerusalem as its capital, and a just settlement of the Palestinian refugee crisis.

In speaking about normalization with Saudi Arabia at the United Nations General Assembly last week, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said, “We must not give the Palestinians a veto over new peace treaties with Arab states. The Palestinians could greatly benefit from a broader peace. They should be part of the process, but they should not have a veto over the process.”

Similarly, in an interview with Fox News, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman did not mention a Palestinian state but only said that the Palestinian issue is very important. We need to solve that part.

He said, “We got to see where we go. We hope that we will reach a place that will ease the life of the Palestinians and get Israel as a player in the Middle East.”

Pompeo said every American president would support a normalization agreement – Democratic or Republican. He said it is in America’s interest to have security relations between the United States and Saudi Arabia and between Israel and Saudi Arabia.

He said peace would be more easily attainable with a Republican president, meaning one that understands the greatest threat to peace in the region is Iran.

He explained that the Abraham Accords advanced due to the Trump administration’s acknowledgment of Israel as America’s primary democratic ally in the region while identifying Iran as the leading state sponsor of terrorism and a significant threat to all other countries.

“When we isolate Iran, the region becomes more peaceful and prosperous,” Pompeo said.

 

Iran terms Netanyahu speech at UNGA a comedy show

Iran has termed speech by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the annual meeting of the UN General Assembly a “comedy show” and utterings against its peaceful nuclear program and its regional actions “unfounded”.

In a statement released, the delegation of the Islamic Republic of Iran noted that Netanyahu had rambled on during his talks to the United Nations about the “curse of a nuclear Iran” and claimed that Tehran had spent “billions to arm its terror proxies.”

In addition, Netanyahu bragged that the scandalous Abraham Accords would herald a “New Middle East” that would bring “Arabs and Jews closer together” and bring about significant changes in the region.

“The baseless allegations made by Israeli officials no longer fool anyone. Iranophobic campaigns and widespread systematic dissemination of disinformation and unfounded allegations against Iran have always been one of the main elements of statements—or better to say, comedy shows—made by the Israeli authorities in this august body,” the Iranian delegation said.

It added, “The regime attempts to portray Iran’s conventional weapon capabilities or its exclusively peaceful nuclear program, one that is under the most robust verification of the International Atomic Energy Agency, as a challenge to regional stability; this is but a hypocritical move to distract from the real danger this regime poses to regional peace and security, particularly its nuclear-weapon arsenals, clandestine and unsafeguarded nuclear installations and activities.”

It also emphasized the Israeli regime’s checkered history of housing, funding, inciting, and arming the most deadly terrorist networks.

“The repulsive Israeli occupation has brought many crises and instability throughout the region. As such, it is ironic that the prime minister of the Israeli regime spoke about developing a regional peace initiative while his bloodthirsty regime plans to annex even more of the already occupied Palestinian territories,” the statement noted.

Netanyahu’s claim that Iranian drones were used in the conflict in Ukraine was also rejected by the delegation, which stated that “such baseless allegations, which are solely based on false flags and fabricated assumptions, are nothing more than a propaganda apparatus launched by certain States to further their political agenda.”

The statement emphasized how Israel continues to threaten regional and international peace and security by possessing all known forms of WMDs.

The delegation responded to Israel’s threats to use force against Iran by saying, “The Islamic Republic of Iran reserves its inherent right to self-defense, under international law and the United Nations Charter, to decisively respond to any threat or wrongdoing committed by the Israeli regime.”

Israel’s disruptive policies and practices were also condemned by the Iranian delegation, which said that the regime has been committing atrocities against Palestinians for more than 70 years “in flagrant violation of the basic principles of morality, humanity, and the rules of international law.”

 

Peace must include Palestinian state with east Jerusalem as capital

Saudi Arabia has said that any solution to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict would need to include an independent Palestinian state with east Jerusalem as its capital.

The statement was made by Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan Al Furhan Al-Saud at the UN General Assembly on Saturday night.

He spoke the day after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gave his address, during which he touted the idea of a "New Middle East" with normalization between Israel and Saudi Arabia.

In interview that the prime minister gave in America, he hinted at the possibility of his coalition considering concessions to the Palestinians as part of their efforts to secure such a peace agreement.

The prime minister spoke to CNN and Fox News on Friday, telling reporters that if he agreed to concessions, he believed his far-right party members would follow.

"Would you be willing to blow up your coalition, essentially, to get this deal with Saudi done?" CNN's Kaitlan Collins asked Netanyahu. 

"I don't think it'll require that," he said. "You think they'll go along with it?" Collins continued. "It's whether I go along with it," Netanyahu responded, deriding statements made by Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich that no concessions would be made. 

 

 

 

Israel must be brought back to its original size

A little ago I have posted almost the entire text of speech of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the United Nations. He claimed, “Israel is on the verge of creating a peace with Saudi Arabia that could transform the Middle East as long as Iran’s nuclear threat is eliminated”.

Netanyahu showed two maps of Israel so that the audience could better understand the historic transformation that was about to occur.  He first showed a map from 1948, a tiny country.

Then he showed a modern map and talked about normalization of Israeli’s ties with four of its Arab neighbors under the US-backed Abraham Accords and drew a circle around those countries.

I am sure, many Muslim countries would immediately recognize Israel, if Saudi Arab normalizes its relations with Israel. However, I request all my readers to read my blog titled “Israel must be brought back to its original size” written as back as December 01, 2012, Following are the excerpts.

I wrote this blog after Israel announced to build 3,000 new settlement homes on occupied land, a slap on the face of international community that has just recognized Palestine State, accepted the philosophy of two sovereign states, Israel and Palestine. The announcement once again proved that Israel is a usurper.

I wrote, “If the international community, particularly United States wants Palestinians to behave diligently, they must asked Israel to stop construction of settlements on occupied land and also bring Israel back to its original boundaries demarcated at the time of creation of a state for the Jews”.

A cautioned, “Israel's moves serves as a harsh reminder to Palestinians that while they now have a state on paper, most of it remains very much under Israeli control, this is a doomsday scenario”.

Israel's decision also embarrassed the United States, which was among just nine countries in the 193-member General Assembly to vote against accepting Palestine as a non-member observer state.

State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland criticized the Israeli announcement. "These actions are counterproductive and make it harder to resume direct negotiations or achieve a two-state solution," she said.

It may be recalled that the successive US administrations have pressured Israel not to build E-1 because it would effectively cut off east Jerusalem from the West Bank, and split the northern part of the territory from the southern part. E-1 will be the death of the two-state solution.

It is on record that Tzipi Livni, Israel's former foreign minister and chief negotiator with the Palestinians warned, "The decision to build thousands of housing units as punishment to the Palestinians only punishes Israel ... (and) only isolates Israel further."

Even at that time Netanyahu was blamed for defying the whole international community and insisting on destroying the two-state solution.

 

The UN endorsed a Palestinian state in territories Israel captured in 1967, but Netanyahu refused to use the 1967 lines as a starting point. The Palestinian demand for a settlement freeze ahead of negotiations still stands.

On the Israeli side, compromise on settlements seemed unlikely as Netanyahu was seeking re-election at the helm of a Likud party had turned more hawkish and in an electoral alliance with an ultra-nationalist pro-settler party.

 

Netanyahu’s New Middle East

Israel is on the verge of creating a peace with Saudi Arabia that could transform the Middle East as long as Iran’s nuclear threat is eliminated, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told the United Nations on Friday.

“We are at the cusp of a dramatic breakthrough, a historic peace with Saudi Arabia”, Netanyahu said as he stood before a mostly empty plenum during the high-level session that marks the opening of the 78th General Assembly.

“Such a peace will go a long way to ending the Arab-Israeli conflict. It will encourage other Arab states to normalize relations with Israel. It will enhance the prospects of peace with the Palestinians,” Netanyahu said.

On a global scale, he said, “It will encourage a broader reconciliation between Judaism and Islam between Jerusalem and Mecca between the descendants of Isaac and the descendants of Ishmael,” he added.

Netanyahu, long known for his reliance on props at the United Nations held up two maps of Israel and the region so that the audience could better understand the historic transformation that was about to occur. 

The first showed a map from 1948, the year of the creation of the state when it was attacked by all its Arab neighbors which showed how Israel was alone in the region.

“Here's Israel in 1948. It's a tiny country, isolated, surrounded by a hostile Arab world. In our first seventy years, we made peace only with Egypt and Jordan,” Netanyahu said.

Then he held up a modern map that already reflected the change that occurred in 2020 when Israel normalized ties with four of its Arab neighbors under the US-backed Abraham Accords, as well as what could occur if Saudi Arabia joined that circle. He took out a red marker and drew a circle around those countries.

“The whole Middle East changes. We tear down the walls of enmity. We bring the possibility of prosperity and peace to this entire region,” Netanyahu said.

He recalled that he had used the same red marker at the UN plenum when highlighting the danger of a nuclear Iran.

“Today, today I bring this marker to show a great blessing… of a new Middle East, between Israel, Saudi Arabia and our other neighbors. We will not only bring down barriers between Israel and our neighbors.”

Netanyahu addressed his vision of a new peace to an almost empty plenum, while outside activists rallied against his judicial reform program.

It was the end of a week of intense diplomatic activity that marked his first trip to the United States since taking office at the end of December 2022.

He arrived as US efforts were underway to forge a quadrilateral deal that would center on an agreement between Washington and Riyadh that would include a normalization deal between that Kingdom and Israel. In exchange, Israel would be expected to make concessions to the Palestinians.

Bloomberg has also reported that the US is considering a security pact with Israel as part of the deal. 

The Saudi deal has been a major focus of Netanyahu’s trip, including his conversation on Wednesday with US President Joe Biden.   

In an interview with Fox News, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman said that his country and Israel were closer than ever to a deal and that the engagement on the matter was serious.

In his UN address, Netanyahu said “I believe we can achieve peace with Saudi Arabia with the leadership of President Biden.”

He added, “Working together with the leadership of Crown Prince Muhammed Bin Salman, we can shape a future of great blessings for all our peoples.”  

Netanyahu’s belief that the normalization of Israeli-Arab ties should occur as the first step toward a resolution of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict has long stood at odds with the internationally accepted understanding that a two-state solution must be a pre-requisite to regional relations.

“For years, my approach to peace was rejected by the so-called experts,” Netanyahu said, adding that, “Well, they were wrong.”

“Under their approach, we didn’t forge a single peace treaty for a quarter century” until the 2020 Abraham Accords, Netanyahu said.

Prior to those accords, peacemaking efforts were based on the false premise that unless we first concluded a peace agreement with the Palestinians, no other Arab state would normalize its relations with Israel, Netanyahu explained.

“I’ve long sought to make peace with the Palestinians. But I also believe that we must not give the Palestinians a veto over new peace treaties with Arab states. The Palestinians could greatly benefit from a broader peace. They should be part of the process, but they should not have a veto over the process,” Netanyahu stated.

“When the Palestinians see that most of the Arab world has reconciled itself to the Jewish state, they too will be more likely to abandon the fantasy of destroying Israel and finally embrace a path of genuine peace with it,” Netanyahu said. 

“A new Palestinian-Israeli relationship, however, cannot be based on lies and on the endless vilification of the Jewish people,” Netanyahu said.

He pointed specifically to statements Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas made in August in which he said that Hitler killed the Jews during World War II because of their history with money lending and not because of anti-Semitism.

“Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas must stop spreading the horrible anti-Semitic conspiracies against the Jewish people and the Jewish state. He recently said that Hitler wasn’t an anti-Semite. You can't make this up. But he did. He said that.”

Netanyahu also took issue with the Palestinian Authority’s policy of providing monthly financial stipends to terrorists with blood on their hands as well as to their family members.  

“The Palestinian Authority must stop glorifying terrorists. They must stop its ghoulish pay-to-slay policy of giving money to Palestinian terrorists for the murder of Jews. This is all outrageous,” Netanyahu said.

“For peace to prevail the Palestinians must stop spewing Jew-hatred and finally reconciliation themselves to the Jewish state. 

“By that I mean not only to the existence of the Jewish state but to the right of the Jewish people to have a state of their own in their historic homeland, the Land of Israel,” Netanyahu added. 

In addition to anti-Semitism, Iran’s pursuit of nuclear weapons and its support of global terrorism is the fly in the ointment when it comes to regional peace, Netanyahu said.

“Rest assured, the fanatics ruling Iran will do everything they can to thwart this historic peace,” Netanyahu stated.

At home Iran has killed and arrested thousands of its own citizens and abroad it has used armed drones and its missile program to threaten its neighbors and has provided weapons to Russia for use against Ukraine, Netanyahu explained.   

“Yet the regime’s aggression is largely met by indifference in the international community,” Netanyahu emphasized.

The international community must do more to support the brave women and men of Iran who despise this regime and yearn for freedom, who've gone out bravely on the sidewalks of Tehran and Iran's other cities and face death,” Netanyahu said.

In light of Iran’s enrichment of uranium, he called for the international community to reimpose crippling sanctions against Iran as promised under the terms of the largely defunct 2015 Iran deal. 

“Eight years ago, the Western powers promised that if Iran violated the nuclear deal, the sanctions would be snapped back,” Netanyahu stated.

“Well, Iran is violating the deal. But the sanctions have not been snapped back,” he explained, adding,“To stop its nuclear ambitions, this policy must change.”

“Sanctions must be snapped back and above all, Iran must face a credible military threat,” Netanyahu said.

He pledged that “As long as I am prime minister of Israel, I will do everything in my power to prevent Iran from getting nuclear weapons.”

Al Quds Day commemorated in India

People in Mumbai (India) commemorated Yaum Al Quds on April 21, 2023, which is held annually on the last Friday of the Holy month of Ramadan. The event is an opportunity to speak out against oppression around the world, particularly the occupation of Palestine.

Large crowds gathered in various parts of the city to participate in the event, with many women joining the rallies. One rally took place from Khoja Masjid to Kesar Baug Hall in the Dongri area, while another took place from Zaib Palace to Chai Coffee in Andheri.

At the Haidery Jama Masjid in Mira Road, participants chanted slogans against the Israeli apartheid regime and its supporters in the US and UK.

Ehsan Haider Raza, a participant from Mira Road, expressed concern about the ongoing genocide of Palestinians and called on governments around the world to take notice and take action against it.

“The ongoing genocide of Palestinians is a cause of concern for the global community. Governments from around the world need to sit up, take notice of the daily killings taking place in occupied-Palestine,” he said.

A participant from Andheri, who preferred to remain anonymous, criticized the hypocrisy of the governments in the US and Europe, saying that if they can take a stand against the occupation of Ukraine by Russia, they should also take a similar stand against the 75-year occupation of Palestinian land.

Overall, the Yaum Al Quds event in Mumbai served as a platform for people to speak out against oppression and show solidarity with the people of Palestine.

 

Iran to expand trade ties with Bangladesh

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi urged the growth of commercial and trade links with Bangladesh while reiterating his administration’s commitment to fostering connections with other Muslim nations.

In a phone conversation with Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Monday, Raisi emphasized the need for Islamic nations to unite and support Palestine while denouncing the Zionist regime’s aggressions, particularly the brutal Israeli actions in Al-Aqsa Mosque and against the fasting Palestinian worshippers.

Raisi expressed congratulations to the government and the Muslim people of Bangladesh on Eid-al-Fitr and stated that Iran’s foreign policy is built on bolstering ties with all nations, particularly those in the Islamic world.

He also expressed optimism for strong ties between Bangladesh and Iran, particularly for the advancement of economic and commercial cooperation.

Sheikh Hasina, for her part, vehemently denounced the criminal activities of the Zionist regime against the Palestinian people, saying, “Supporting the oppressed people of Palestine and condemning the aggressions of the Zionist regime is the fixed position of the government and the people of Bangladesh.”

She stressed the need for improving connections with Iran, particularly in the commercial and economic spheres, as well as regional cooperation.

 

No White House visit for Netanyahu

Eleven weeks into his third term as Israel's prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu has yet to be received at the White House, signaling apparent US unhappiness over the policies of his right-wing government.

Most new Israeli leaders had visited the United States or met the president by this point in their premierships, according to a Reuters review of official visits going back to the late 1970s. Only two out of 13 previous prime ministers heading a new government waited longer.

The White House declined to confirm Netanyahu has yet to be invited. A State Department spokesperson referred Reuters to the Israeli government for information about the prime minister's travel plans.

Israel’s embassy in Washington declined to comment.

"The message they clearly want to send is, if you pursue objectionable policies, there's no entitlement to the Oval Office sit-down,” said David Makovsky, a former senior adviser to the Special Envoy for Israeli-Palestinian Negotiations, now at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy.

Since the start of the year, demonstrators have filled Israel's streets to protest the government's plan to curb the power of the Supreme Court, which critics say removes a check on the governing coalition.

Amid escalating West Bank violence, the right-wing government's action authorizing settler outposts and inflammatory comments from a member of Netanyahu's cabinet with responsibilities over Jewish settlements have drawn criticism from US officials, including from Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin during a visit to Israel last week.

US-Israeli ties remain close. The United States has long been Israel’s main benefactor, sending more than US$3 billion each year in military assistance.

President Joe Biden has known Netanyahu for decades, the two have spoken by phone, and senior officials in both countries have made visits since Netanyahu's government was formed in December 2023, despite Israel's spiraling political crisis.

But the lack of a White House visit underscores both the desire of the Biden administration to see different policies in Israel and what critics say is a reluctance to take more forceful steps.

US statements on events in Israel have often comprised “frustrating boiler-plate language,” said Sarah Yerkes, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace who formerly worked at the State Department on policy towards Israel and the Palestinians.

“It has been frustrating to see this lack of teeth to any of the US responses,” Yerkes said.

“They don't get to be treated with the same kid gloves that they've always been treated with because ... they’re on the path to not being a democracy anymore.”

The Biden administration prefers quiet conversations over public criticism, a senior State Department official said, especially when it comes to the crisis over a proposed Israeli judicial overhaul.

“Anything that we would say on the specific proposals has the potential to be deeply counterproductive,” the official said, adding the goal was to encourage Israel’s leaders to build consensus over the reforms, rather than to be prescriptive on what the outcome should be.

Chris Murphy, a Democratic member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said he hopes the administration will persist with a clear message to Israel.

"I would certainly like to see the administration to be sending a strong signal that we have to maintain our support for a future Palestinian state and the decisions that the Netanyahu government are making now greatly compromise that future," Murphy said.

A separate group of 92 progressive lawmakers warned in a letter to Biden that the judicial overhaul could empower those in Israel who favor annexing the West Bank, "undermining the prospects for a two-state solution and threatening Israel’s existence as a Jewish and democratic state.”

US leaders have rarely criticized Israeli policies since Secretary of State James Baker in 1989 advised the country against moves toward annexing Palestinian territory and expanding settlements. Baker later banned Netanyahu, at the time a deputy minister of foreign affairs, from the State Department after he criticized US policy toward Israel.

Biden, a Democrat who describes himself as a Zionist, says US support for Israel is ironclad.

“Biden’s own personal instincts are such that it’s very difficult for him to want to adopt an extremely tough posture towards Israel,” Dennis Ross, a veteran US Middle East peace negotiator now with the Washington Institute for Near East Policy.

“He would prefer to have the Middle East in a box so he can focus only on Russia, Ukraine and China. Unfortunately, the Middle East has a way of imposing itself, unless we initiate enough to try to manage the environment.”

 

 

Republicans urge Biden to veto anti-Israel UNSC resolution on Monday

Republican members of Congress are calling on President Joe Biden to veto an anti-Israel resolution expected to be brought on Monday to the United Nations Security Council and to unequivocally declare that his administration opposes such unilateral moves at the international forum.

“As the UN Security Council once again moves to consider another one-sided, biased, anti-Israel resolution, it is imperative that the United States maintain its position that only direct negotiations between Israelis and Palestinians can yield progress,” Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy wrote in a letter to the president that was also signed by Steve Scalise, the Majority Leader and House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Michael McCaul.

Members of the Security Council have been negotiating a draft resolution on Israeli settlements in the West Bank drafted by the United Arab Emirates in coordination with the Palestinians.

A vote on the resolution is expected to take place on Monday amid Palestinian fears that it would be vetoed by the United States.

Senator Tom Cotton of Arkansas wrote, “If the UN Security Council takes action on Monday to punish Israel, President Biden should stand beside them and block the ridiculous, politically-motivated measure.”

Congressman Max Miller, a new Jewish republican from Ohio, wrote, “This resolution is the UN’s latest attack on Israel’s sovereignty. Biden must veto this measure in the Security Council and reaffirm that the United States will always stand beside our ally.”

On Saturday, Secretary of State Antony Blinken called Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas to discuss the upcoming Security Council session on the situation in the Middle East. 

During the phone call with Blinken, Abbas stressed the need to compel Israel to stop all its unilateral measures, including settlements, house demolitions, incursions into cities, villages, camps and Al-Aqsa Mosque, and killings, the PA’s official news agency Wafa said.

Senator Bill Hagerty of Tennessee said, "Rather than focus on grave threats posed by China, Russia, Iran and North Korea, the UN continues its anti-Israel obsession. Biden should stand with Israel and veto this resolution. Do not repeat the shameful Obama-Biden abstention on UNSCR 2334 in December 2016."

And Senator Jim Risch of Idaho said, “The Biden Administration must use its veto in the UN Security Council to defend our ally number one srael. This resolution will not lead to peace and only furthers anti-Israel actions at the UN."

 

Over 90 nations demand Israel lift sanctions on Palestinians

Israel must withdraw the sanctions it levied against the Palestinian Authority (PA) for seeking assistance from the world court, over 90 nations have declared in a signed statement.

“We express our deep concern regarding the Israeli government’s decision to impose punitive measures against the Palestinian people, leadership and civil society following the request by the General Assembly of an advisory opinion by the International Court of Justice,” the nations said in the statement they signed.

They referenced the UN General Assembly vote to ask the ICJ to issue an advisory opinion on whether Israel’s occupation of the West Bank was legal. The ICJ opinion will also cover Gaza, which is under Hamas control and east Jerusalem, to which Israel applied sovereignty in 1967.

The UN resolution passed with the support of 87 nations out of the 193-member General Assembly, 16 countries voted against it and 53 abstained.

But some of those countries which opposed the vote or abstained argued that it is wrong for Israel to punish the PA over the vote.

Among those that signed the text were 24 out of the 27 European Union nations. The only three EU countries that refrained from signing were Austria, Croatia and Hungary. Even countries that are enormously supportive of Israel in international forums such as the Czech Republic and Germany signed that statement.

“Regardless of each country’s position on the resolution, we rejected punitive measures in response to a request for an advisory opinion by the ICJ and more broadly in response to a General Assembly resolution and call for their immediate reversal,” the statement said.

“As member states of the UN, we reconfirm our unwavering support for the ICJ and international law as the cornerstone of our international order, as well as well as our commitment to multilateralism,” it added. 

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres also expressed his concerns over the sanctions imposed by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s new government which came into power at the end of last month, just as the UNGA vote was held. 

One of its first steps was to deduct from the tax fees it collects on behalf of the PA a sum equal to the amount of money the PA spends on monthly stipends to terrorists and their families.

It also removed NIS 139 million from those fees and gave them to Israeli victims of Palestinian terror. Other steps included halting all Palestinian development in Area C of the West Bank, which is under IDF military and civilian control and the denial of PA VIP cards.

Israel Ambassador to the United Nations Gilad Erdan dismissed the groundswell of global sentiment against the PA sanctions, explaining that the request for an ICJ advisory opinion was an act of political terrorism against the Jewish state.

“This is a meaningless declarative statement and every country that signed it only added fuel to the fire of Palestinian incitement and terror, and removed any chance of reconciliation.”