Emirates convenes emergency Arab Parliament in the face of escalating conflict in Israel
The United Arab Emirates has convened the Arab Inter-Parliamentary Union on Wednesday to host an emergency virtual summit in light of the clashes between Israel and the Islamic militia Hamas. The purpose of the summit will be to "discuss" the situation in Jerusalem and the Al-Aqsa Mosque, according to Emirati officials through the WAM news agency.
The Arab Inter-Parliamentary Union, also known as the Arab Parliament, is an organisation made up of the 21 member countries that make up the Maghreb region, the Persian Gulf and part of the Middle East, with the clear exception of Israel. The 'Deal of the Century', Trump's proposal for Palestinian-Israeli reconciliation, was the reason for their last emergency meeting in February 2020.
A year later, the same conflict in a different guise has prompted the UAE to call the other partners to action. This week, Abu Dhabi's sheikh and crown prince, Mohammed bin Zayed, expressed concern about the outbreaks of violence in Jerusalem. The deputy supreme commander of the armed forces discussed the developments with Jordanian Prime Minister Bisher al-Khasawneh during a meeting in the Emirati capital on Monday.
Anwar Gargash, diplomatic adviser to UAE President Khalifa bin Zayed al-Nahayan, condemned the violence against Palestinians: "The UAE stands for Palestinian rights, an end to the Israeli occupation, a two-state solution and an independent Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital".
Images of the Al-Aqsa Mosque appearing to be on fire set regional actors on edge. The Israeli police said in a brief statement that it was fireworks that started the fire, however, it was not in the mosque - Islam's third holiest site - but in a tree 10 metres away.
External criticism, however, was not slow in coming. The president of the Islamic Republic of Iran, which is also not a member of the Arab Parliament, Hassan Rohani, has criticised the silence of Arab countries in the region in the face of what he called Israel's "crimes" against the Palestinian people. "The criminal Zionists who kill people have nothing to do with religion," he added. For its part, the Iranian Revolutionary Guard stresses that it will support Palestinian groups "more than ever".
According to local media, Egypt on Tuesday proposed an immediate ceasefire between the two sides, which was roundly rejected by the Israeli government. The pressure has been joined by Jordan and other neighbouring countries, including Saudi Arabia, in criticising Israel for its offensives. However, Rohani claims that Iran is working alone on behalf of the Palestinians, while Foreign Minister Javad Zarif is travelling to Syria to discuss the situation with the al-Assad government.
Zarif himself was received in Damascus by his Syrian counterpart, Faisal Mikdad, in a meeting in which both denounced the incidents at the Al-Aqsa mosque and in "the occupied territories". "The bombardment of Gaza has created serious conditions in the region. Syria, as one of the main resistance countries, has a very important role to play in this regard," Zarif said.
US National Security Council spokeswoman Emily Horne on Tuesday expressed her full support for Israel's security and its legitimate right to defend itself following a telephone conversation between National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan and his Israeli counterpart Meir Ben Shabbat. White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki told a press briefing that President Biden is keeping abreast of the latest developments and has directed his team to "engage intensively with senior Israeli and Palestinian officials, as well as leaders throughout the Middle East".
Turkey has joined in the criticism through its presidential communications director, Fahrettin Altun, who has also rejected the US position on the issue, justifying Israel's actions as "self-defence". Erdogan has demanded that the international community "teach Israel a firm and deterrent lesson" in a telephone conversation with Russian President Vladimir Putin, reports Anadolu Agency.
The latest pronouncement on the matter has come from the President of the European Council, Charles Michel. The European leader expressed his concern to Israeli President Reuven Rivlin on Wednesday. "The priority must be to de-escalate and prevent the loss of innocent civilian lives on both sides," he tweeted.
So far, the death toll in the Israeli-Hamas clashes has risen to 54 dead, 48 Palestinians and six Israelis, and hundreds injured. The spiral of violence is escalating in the face of the international community's momentary inability to persuade those involved or to intervene directly in the conflict.
