Arab foreign ministers meet in Tunisia

CAIRO - 29 March 2019: Arab foreign ministers met on Friday in, in preparation to the Arab Summit due on Sunday in Tunisia, deploring US decision of recognizing Israeli “sovereignty” over the Syrian occupied Golan Heights.

Tunisian Foreign Minister Khemaies Jhinaoui said that his country is working with other Arab countries to tackle the repercussions of the US decision concerning the Syrian Golan Heights.

“We will work with our Arab brothers and the international group to tackle all possible repercussions of this decision in all international and regional organizations,” he said in his speech at the ministerial preparatory meeting.

In his speech, Saudi Foreign Minister Ibrahim Abdulaziz Al-Assaf announced his country’s solidarity with the Syria, saying “Golan Heights are occupied territories.” He also called for a political solution between the opposition and Bashar al-Assad’s government.

The quartet committee of foreign ministers of Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, and the Arab League Secretary General Ahmed Abul Gheit, convened on the sidelines of the preparatory meeting to tackle the latest developments of Iran’s “interfering in the region.”

At the beginning of the preparatory meeting, Suadi Arabia’s Al-Assaf delivered the presidency of the meeting to Tunisia’s Jhinaoui.

The Palestinian-Israeli file, Syrian crisis, Yemen’s deteriorating situation, and Libya turmoil are priorities on the Arab Summit’s agenda.

The summit will also tackle the situations in Somalia, Sudan, Comoros, and Iraq. Moreover, the Arab leaders will discuss a decision to write off 75 percent of Iraqi foreign debts.


Additional reporting Mustafa Anbar