Muscat // Leaders of the GCC nations said yesterday that they would urge five permanent members of the UN General Assembly to "assume their responsibility" towards Gaza by calling on Israel to stop its attacks.
The call came as Israel's military continued to pound the Gaza Strip for the fourth successive day, bringing the death toll since Saturday to more than 380.
"Moves and contacts have already taken place in the past few days," said Abdulrahman al Attiyah, the GCC's secretary general, after the closing ceremony of the 29th summit. "There is work that is already taking shape." Gulf officials said Arab leaders were resolving their differences about the agenda of a planned Arab League summit in Qatar on Friday.
"The summit should be held under these circumstances," Mr al Attiyah said. "I think that we, as Arab states, should do our duty to help our brothers in Gaza avoid this situation."
Yusuf bin Alawi Abdallah, the Omani foreign minister, confirmed that the sultanate would attend the pan-Arab gathering.
"This is a very sensitive crisis and there are several efforts being exerted for the sake of achieving peace," he said. "Pressure is being exerted jointly [to stop Israeli attacks], but that doesn't mean there are no differences." Arab foreign ministers meet today in Cairo to draft a joint statement on the developments in Gaza.
The closing statement of the GCC's two-day summit said: "Israel is requested to stop its practice of arrogant power and mutilating the unarmed Palestinian people, and lifting the oppressive blockade."
The heads of states "strongly denounce the flagrant Israeli aggression and hold Israel responsible for pushing the situation to this dangerous level as a result of its arrogant policies". GCC leaders also called on the international community to "to immediately move to stop the massacres and aggression by the Israeli killing machine and provide the proper protection for the Palestinian people".
They expressed their hope that Barack Obama, the US president-elect, would give "high priority" to the Palestinian question and peace process in a "way that leads to meeting commitments and promises to establish a Palestinian state ? and comprehensive and fair peace in the Middle East."
Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, the Emir of Qatar, said: "The Palestinians have been left without any help or international assistance and I think that, as Arab states, it is our duty to come to their aid. It is also the duty of the Organisation of Islamic Countries to play the same role supporting the Palestinians as the GCC is playing."
The statement emphasised a need for Palestinian accord: "Palestinian unity is the shield that protects the Palestinian people."
Hamas, which won a landslide victory in the 2006 parliamentary elections, wrested control of Gaza from its rival Fatah 18 months ago. Efforts to bring feuding Palestinian factions to reconciliation talks have repeatedly failed.
Hamas and Islamic Jihad, the second-largest Palestinian Islamic militant group, this week rejected calls by the Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinian president, to take part in these talks.
Gulf officials have been outspoken about the need for harmony among Palestinian groups if peace efforts were to be fruitful.
"We all feel we haven't done enough," Mr Abdallah, the Omani foreign minister, said yesterday.
"But we call for those sensible, especially the Palestinians to look for the best means to snatch their right from the occupation and to also move above the complexities of the Palestinian politics."
Commenting on mounting criticism to Egypt's reaction to Gaza's plight, Mr Abdullah said the heads of the GCC nations were confident that Egypt was taking the right steps.
"Egypt is the cane the Arabs lean against," he said. "The role of the GCC countries is to support Egypt, especially with regard to Gaza."
Egypt and Mr Abbas have called for a renewal of six-month ceasefire that expired just days before the attacks began on Saturday.
Hizbollah, the Lebanese shia organisation, slammed the Egyptian government for closing its borders with Gaza, and called on the Egyptian people to revolt against their leaders.
hmahmoud@thenational.ae
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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Established in 1998, the Sheikh Mohammed Centre for Cultural Understanding was created with a vision to teach residents about the traditions and customs of the UAE. Its motto is ‘open doors, open minds’. All year-round, visitors can sign up for a traditional Emirati breakfast, lunch or dinner meal, as well as a range of walking tours, including ones to sites such as the Jumeirah Mosque or Al Fahidi Historical Neighbourhood.
Every year during Ramadan, an iftar programme is rolled out. This allows guests to break their fast with the centre’s presenters, visit a nearby mosque and observe their guides while they pray. These events last for about two hours and are open to the public, or can be booked for a private event.
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- 2002: "Hezbollah supporters feared becoming a target of security services because of the effects of [9/11] ... discussions on Hezbollah policy moved from mosques into smaller circles in private homes." Supporters in Germany: 800
- 2013: "Financial and logistical support from Germany for Hezbollah in Lebanon supports the armed struggle against Israel ... Hezbollah supporters in Germany hold back from actions that would gain publicity." Supporters in Germany: 950
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Checking: the obsession or thoughts focus on some harm coming from things not being as they should, which usually centre around the theme of safety. For example, the obsession is “the building will burn down”, therefore the compulsion is checking that the oven is switched off.
Contamination: the obsession is focused on the presence of germs, dirt or harmful bacteria and how this will impact the person and/or their loved ones. For example, the obsession is “the floor is dirty; me and my family will get sick and die”, the compulsion is repetitive cleaning.
Orderliness: the obsession is a fear of sitting with uncomfortable feelings, or to prevent harm coming to oneself or others. Objectively there appears to be no logical link between the obsession and compulsion. For example,” I won’t feel right if the jars aren’t lined up” or “harm will come to my family if I don’t line up all the jars”, so the compulsion is therefore lining up the jars.
Intrusive thoughts: the intrusive thought is usually highly distressing and repetitive. Common examples may include thoughts of perpetrating violence towards others, harming others, or questions over one’s character or deeds, usually in conflict with the person’s true values. An example would be: “I think I might hurt my family”, which in turn leads to the compulsion of avoiding social gatherings.
Hoarding: the intrusive thought is the overvaluing of objects or possessions, while the compulsion is stashing or hoarding these items and refusing to let them go. For example, “this newspaper may come in useful one day”, therefore, the compulsion is hoarding newspapers instead of discarding them the next day.
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