Cairo: Jassem Albudaiwi, Secretary General of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), emphasized during the Arab summit that the meeting coincided with dire circumstances, as the Palestinian people continue to endure aggression and systematic ethnic cleansing threatening their existence, identity, and dignity.
According to Kuwait News Agency, Albudaiwi underscored the necessity for a unified and firm Arab stance to meet these challenges and reflect the voice of Arab peoples. He highlighted the Palestinian cause as a crucial test of the Arab nation's capability to defend its historical rights. Albudaiwi pointed out that the Israeli occupation is systematically uprooting people from their lands and imposing a new colonial reality, defying Security Council resolutions.
The GCC Secretary General noted that GCC countries, alongside their Arab counterparts, have pursued peace by offering initiatives and mediations for a fair solution that preserves Palestinian rights and dignity. However, he attributed the hindrance to Israel's reluctance to adhere to international law and treaties. Albudaiwi expressed gratitude to President Mahmoud Abbas for recognizing the GCC's role in supporting the Palestinian cause.
He called on the international community to pressure Israel to cease fire in Gaza, lift the siege, and ensure the delivery of humanitarian aid. Albudaiwi also advocated for deploying international peacekeeping forces in Palestinian territories, supporting the Gaza reconstruction plan, and organizing an international conference to implement it.
Albudaiwi firmly opposed the forced displacement of Palestinians and the imposition of burdens on Arab countries, particularly Egypt. He urged support for the international coalition to implement the two-state solution, as proposed by Saudi Arabia in collaboration with Norway and the European Union. He reaffirmed the GCC's commitment to the Palestinian people's rights, including their right to an independent state along the borders of June 4, 1967, with East Jerusalem as its capital.
Furthermore, Albudaiwi addressed Israeli attacks beyond Palestinian borders into Syrian and Lebanese territories, reiterating the GCC's stance that the Golan Heights is Syrian Arab land and condemning Israeli settlement expansion in the occupied Golan. He called on the international community to stop assaults on Syrian territories and ensure the withdrawal of Israeli occupation forces from all occupied Syrian lands and southern Lebanon.