The Arab League (AL) issued a closing statement at the end of the proceedings of the 30th Arab Summit, which was held in the Tunisian capital on Sunday, stressing the importance of Arab cooperation to build a "stable and secure future, as a way to reinstill hope for the Arab peoples who have suffered from the debilitating impact of grave and exhausting circumstances." The Arab League reaffirmed the centrality of the question of Palestine to the Arab nation, and the Arab identity of occupied East Jerusalem, as a capital for the state of Palestine.
The AL stressed the need for a comprehensive and permanent peace settlement in the Middle East as embodied in the 2002 Arab Peace Initiative.
The AL said it rejects as illegitimate the US decision to recognise Jerusalem as the capital of Israel; stresses the need for a negotiation process with a specific timeline to guarantee the establishment of an independent Palestinian state based on the 4 June 1967 borders.
The statement added that the AL supports the vision outlined by Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas for peace, which he presented to the UN in 2018; and rejects all unilateral steps taken by Israel to change the status of Jerusalem and the occupied territories.
The AL stressed that it considers the US decision to recognise Israeli sovereignty over the Golan null and void in form and substance, reaffirming that the Golan Heights is an occupied Syrian land.
The AL rejected Iranian interference in internal Arab affairs and its support for terrorist militias; demands that Iran withdraw its militias from all Arab countries; and stresses its keenness on mutual respect as the basis for bilateral relations between league members and other countries.
On the Syrian crisis, the AL stressed its support for a political solution that would end the crisis, safeguard Syria's sovereignty, and put an end to the existence of all foreign, sectarian and terrorist groups in Syria.
The AL renewed its support for Lebanon's sovereignty in the face of repeated Israeli violations, and vows to aid Lebanon in shouldering the cost of housing Syrian refugees.
The statement also expressed Arab support for national reconciliation in Iraq to achieve security and stability; and support for the legitimate institutions in Libya in their efforts to defeat terrorism and safeguard the integrity of the country.
The AL also called for confronting and defeating terrorist organisations and ideas in the Middle East and everywhere; rejected any attempt to link terrorism with Islam; and called on the United Nations to issue a unified definition of terrorism.
The Arab leaders stressed the AL's support for the UAE's sovereignty of the three islands of Tanab and Abu Mousa, calling on Iran to accept the Emirates's initiative to find a peaceful resolution, thrugh negotiations or arbitration, for the dispute overthe islands.
The AL also expressed its complete solidarity with the "brothers in Sudan" to safeguard security, sovereignty and stability in the country.
Read Ahram Online's coverage of main speeches by Arab leaders at the summit here
