Arab Leaders Convene in Jeddah, Welcome Syrian President Bashar Assad

The 32^nd Arab Summit convened on Friday in the Saudi city of Jeddah in presence of the Lebanese prime minister Najib Mikati, the Syrian President Bashar Assad and 13 other leaders.

The Arab League had suspended since 2011 Syria  participation as a number of Arab regimes were involved in backing the terrorist war on the Syrian people, army and government.

On May 7, 2023, Arab League foreign ministers adopted a decision to readmit Syria, consolidating a regional push to normalize ties with the country that confronted a devastating terrorist war during the latest decade.

The Arab Summit in Jeddah has concentrated on Syria participation, the centrality of the Palestinian cause and the crisis in Sudan.

The opening speeches welcomed President Assad, hoping that Syria return to the Arab League contributes to the restoration of its stability.

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad Bin Salman welcomed Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad back to the Arab League.

“We are pleased today by the attendance of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in this summit,” Bin Salman said in a speech, adding he hoped the return would lead to “stability” in Syria.

President al-Assad: We are in front of a historic opportunity to rearrange our affairs with the least amount of foreign intervention

President Bashar Al-Assad addressed the summit, saying, “We have to search about the big titles that pose threat to our future and produce our crises in order to not drown in addressing the results, not the reasons.”

President Al-Assad said the headlines are too many for words, and summits are not enough… They do not begin with the crimes of the Zionist entity, which is rejected by the Arabs, and do not end with the danger of the Ottoman expansionist mentality and are inseparable from the challenge of development as a top priority for our developing societies, here comes the role of the League of Arab States as the natural platform for discussing various issues and addressing them.

“We are in front of a historic opportunity to rearrange our affairs with the least amount of foreign intervention,” the President said.

The Syrian President added that the joint Arab action is in need to common visions, strategies and targets.

President al-Assad hoped the Summit would be a starting point for the Arab action, solidarity among Arab states to achieve peace, prosperity and development in the region instead of war and destruction.

The President added that the cracks that have emerged over the last decade must be addressed, and the most important thing is to let the people manage their internal affairs and avoid external interference in their affair.

President al-Assad thanked the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques and his highness crown prince Mohammad bin Salman for the great role of Saudi Arabia and its efforts to boost reconciliation in the Arab region and make this summit a success.

The Algerian FM Ahmad Attaf welcomed President Assad, underlining the importance of restoring the Arab unity.

Attaf denounced the recent Zionist aggression on Gaza, calling on the UNSC  to halt the Israeli attacks on the Palestinians.

Arab Summit’s closing statement urges Lebanon to elect president, backs refugee return

The closing statement of the Summit underlined the importance of a fair settlement for the Palestinian cause, rejecting any foreign intervention that would fuel the crisis in Sudan.

The statement welcomed the agreement concluded by Iran and Saudi to reinforce the security and economic cooperation between the two countries.

The Arab summit called on the Lebanese to speedily elect a new president and form an effective government, underscoring the importance of the Syrian refugees return to their homeland.

Source: Al-Manar English Website