Baghdad will host the 34th Arab League summit on Saturday, bringing together leaders and senior officials from the bloc’s 27 member states. The high-level summit will address pressing regional issues, including political, economic, and security challenges.
“There is clear harmony in the vision of the three countries, and we discussed energy and oil issues,” Iraqi Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein said in a trilateral presser with his Jordanian and Egyptian counterparts Ayman al-Safadi and Badr Abdelatty.
Safadi commended Baghdad as a “pillar of security,” saying that the three countries have a common goal of resolving regional crises, including the reconstruction of Syria.
“Syria’s security is a pillar of security and stability in the region,” Safadi said. “We support Syria’s reconstruction and call for an end to the Zionist aggression against Syria.”
Israel has carried out hundreds of airstrikes on Syria since the ousting of former dictator Bashar al-Assad - attacks repeatedly condemned by the new Damascus administration as a violation of sovereignty.
Abdelatty also praised Baghdad for hosting the upcoming Arab League summit. “The convening of the Arab Summit in Baghdad is evidence of Iraq’s stability and security,” he said.
Ahead of the presser, the three top diplomats held a comprehensive meeting in preparation for the summit, according to the Iraqi foreign ministry.
“The two ministers congratulated Iraq on hosting the summit and expressed their full support for the efforts made by the Iraqi government to ensure the success of the summit and strengthen joint Arab action,” the ministry said in a statement.
They also discussed the war in the Gaza Strip, reiterating their support for the Palestinian cause.
“The international community must shoulder its responsibilities regarding what is happening in Gaza,” said Safadi. “We agreed to reject the Zionist aggression in Gaza and call on the international community to save Gaza.”
Abdelatty stressed that “there is no stability in the region without a solution to the Palestinian cause,” and reiterated the Arab countries’ categorical rejection of “the displacement of the Gaza Strip’s residents.”
In October 2023, the Palestinian movement Hamas launched a large-scale incursion into southern Israel, killing over 1,170 people, according to Israeli figures. Israel responded with a large-scale offensive that, according to Gaza’s health ministry, has killed over 52,000 people, mostly civilians, and wounded more than 118,000 others.
Following 15 months of war, Israel and Hamas agreed to a ceasefire which went into effect in mid-January. However, on March 18, Israel launched new attacks on Gaza, killing more than 2,300 Palestinians and injuring more than 2500 others, according to the Gaza health ministry. Israel says the offensive aims to secure the return of 59 hostages still held by Hamas.
Since early March, Israel has barred all supplies - including food, water, and medicine - into Gaza, in a bid to pressure Hamas to renegotiate the ceasefire.
“We have gone nearly 70 days without any aid entering Gaza, and this is shameful for the international community,” Abdelatty lamented, calling the prevention of aid from the conflict-ridden enclave “something that cannot be tolerated.”
In recent years, Baghdad emerged as a key mediator between regional rivals, hosting multiple rounds of talks between Iran and Saudi Arabia. These discussions, mediated by Iraq and Oman, culminated in a landmark China-brokered deal in March 2023 that normalized diplomatic relations between Riyadh and Tehran after seven years of severed ties.
Iraq has also offered to mediate in other regional and international conflicts, including the Yemen conflict - described by the United Nations as one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises - as well as the Russia-Ukraine war.
