Arab League foreign ministers condemned Israel's conduct in the Gaza war at a meeting in Cairo on Tuesday, with the group's Secretary General Ahmed Aboul Gheit describing it as “a year of genocide and ethnic cleansing”.
The 162nd Arab League foreign ministers' assembly convened on Monday, bringing together the region’s top diplomats to address crises in Gaza, Sudan and Libya. Mr Aboul Gheit delivered a scathing critique of Israel's actions, highlighting that more than 41,000 Palestinians had been killed since October 7 last year.
“We have witnessed a year of genocide, a year of ethnic cleansing and a year of displacement,” Mr Aboul Gheit said, accusing the international community of failing to take decisive action and allowing Israel to continue its aggression with impunity.
“The great powers in the world today are either unwilling or unable to exert pressure on the occupation,” he said.
Mr Aboul Gheit said Israel's military operation in Gaza was being fuelled by a “web of deceit and fabrication”, despite a looming threat of regional devastation.
He accused Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of using a dispute over the Salah Al Din Corridor – a strip of land between Gaza and Egypt that is also known as the Philadelphi Corridor – as an excuse to continue fighting.
“Israel’s Prime Minister is making false claims that the Philadelphi corridor is hindering a prisoner deal and ceasefire, but the truth is that he doesn’t want to reach a ceasefire agreement and refuses to do his part to realise it,” said Mr Aboul Gheit.
The corridor, currently occupied by Israeli forces, is a key sticking point in negotiations for a ceasefire, with Israel and Egypt both insisting on controlling the area. Mr Aboul Gheit said Mr Netanyahu is not prepared to make concessions or halt the violence, “not even to save his own people, who have become aware of his manipulations and exposed agenda”.
There have been large demonstrations in Israeli cities, with protesters calling on Mr Netanyahu to strike a ceasefire deal with Hamas to secure the release of hostages held in Gaza.
Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, representing Ankara at the Arab League meeting for the first time in 13 years, echoed Aboul Gheit's remarks. “All countries that extend support to Netanyahu are complicit in the genocide taking place in Gaza,” he said. “They must take responsibility for this.”
Turkey's warming ties to its Arab neighbours were on full display at the meeting, with Mr Fidan emphasising the importance of Turkish-Arab co-operation to address the region's conflicts. “We are bound by our shared faith, geographic and historical ties, as well as our bonds of solidarity and friendship,” he said.
He highlighted a recent visit by Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El Sisi to Ankara. This was a significant step in the normalisation of relations between the two countries and followed a visit to Cairo by Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in February.
Mr Fidan said there is a dire need for a two-state solution, saying “peace cannot be achieved without a just solution for the Israeli-Palestinian conflict”. He called for an end to Israel's occupation and the establishment of an independent Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital.
EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell, who began an official visit to Egypt on Monday, also spoke out at the Arab League meeting against Israel's attacks on Gaza, calling for the violence to end. He said there was a need for international co-operation to address the crisis.
“One horror cannot justify another,” he said earlier from outside the Rafah crossing on Egypt’s border with Gaza. Mr Borrell's trip comes as the EU seeks to play a more active role in mediating the conflict. His efforts, however, have been met with scepticism by some Arab leaders, who view the EU as soft on Israel.
The Arab League foreign ministers' meeting also considered other regional issues, including the crisis in Sudan and conflict in Libya. Mr Aboul Gheit called for international support to help Sudan address its humanitarian crisis, which he said was the worst in the region.
The league would persist with efforts to reach a ceasefire, he said. “We will continue to work together to exert pressure on the international community to reject Israeli aggression and support the Palestinian people,” said Mr Aboul Gheit. “The time for words is over; it is time for action.”
