Israeli wars in Gaza, Lebanon on Arab-Islamic summit agenda in Saudi Arabia 

Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has demanded that Israel immediately stop its military aggression in Gaza and Lebanon at the opening of a summit of Arab and Muslim leaders in Riyadh.

In an address before the joint Arab League and Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) summit on Monday, the crown prince, also known as MBS, condemned the “massacre committed against Palestinian and Lebanese people”.

He urged Israel “to refrain from any further act of aggression” and called on countries around the world to recognise Palestinian statehood.

Ahmed Aboul Gheit, secretary-general of the Arab League, also joined MBS in condemning Israel’s military operation in Gaza and Lebanon, saying that “words cannot express the plight of the Palestinian people”.

“The actions taken by Israel against the Palestinian people are undermining efforts to achieve lasting peace. It is only with justice that we will be able to establish lasting peace,” Aboul Gheit said.

“The world cannot turn a blind eye” to Israeli violence, he stressed.

Lebanon’s Prime Minister Najib Mikati told the summit that his country was suffering an “unprecedented” crisis that threatens its existence, as Israel wages war on Hezbollah.

“Lebanon is going through an unprecedented historical and existential crisis that threatens its present and future,” he said.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, and Nigerian President Bola Tinubu also attended the summit.

Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian did not attend the meeting due to pressing “executive matters”. But in a phone call with MBS, Pezeshkian said Iran’s First Vice President Mohammad Reza Aref would attend.

The summit comes a year after a similar gathering in Riyadh of the Cairo-based Arab League and the Jeddah-based OIC, during which leaders condemned Israeli actions in Gaza as “barbaric”.

However, leaders were unable to agree on action against Israel despite calls to sever economic and diplomatic ties with the country or disrupt its oil supplies.

The 57-member OIC and 22-member Arab League include countries that recognise Israel and those firmly opposed to its regional integration.

Donald Trump’s election to the United States presidency last week – and his upcoming, second term in the White House – are likely to be on leaders’ minds in Riyadh, said Anna Jacobs, senior Gulf analyst for the International Crisis Group think tank.

“This summit is very much an opportunity for regional leaders to signal to the incoming Trump administration what they want in terms of US engagement,” she told the AFP news agency.

“The message will likely be one of dialogue, de-escalation and calling out Israeli military campaigns in the region.”

Israel’s war on Gaza began after an unprecedented Hamas attack on Israel in October 2023 that claimed more than 1,100 lives. Since then, Israel has killed more than 43,600 Palestinians in Gaza, most of them civilians.

Israel has also killed more than 3,100 people in Lebanon since October 7 last year as it fights Iran-backed Hezbollah.