GCC ministers reject Israeli accusations against Qatar of supporting terrorism

The Foreign Ministers of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) said on Wednesday that they “strongly reject” Israel’s flimsy accusations that “other countries” are supporting terrorism, referring in particular to the Israeli accusation against Qatar over its support for the Gaza Strip and the Palestinian factions’ positions without explicitly naming it.

Anadolu news agency reported that the GCC ministerial statement was issued after their meeting in the city of Jeddah, in western Saudi Arabia, to discuss the latest developments in the region and was published by the official Saudi Press Agency.

According to the news agency, the foreign ministers said in their statement that Israel’s accusations are “a desperate attempt to dismiss Israel’s continuous violations of the basic rights of the Palestinian people at a time when it is practicing state terrorism with full indifference to international law and international public opinion.”

The meeting discussed the GCC’s position on three different issues: the fight against terrorism, the situation in Gaza and the political developments in Iraq.

The foreign ministers stressed “the importance of concerted efforts to preserve the lives of the people in the region and to protect their interests and gains and fight extremist terrorist movements in order to enhance regional security and stability”. The statement commended Saudi King Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz’s speech on 1 August, when he singled out the fight against terrorism and warned of the strife that threatens the Arab and Islamic world.

With regards to Gaza, the foreign ministers condemned “the aggression, war crimes and heinous state terrorism practiced by Israeli forces in the Gaza Strip” and communicated “their strong disapproval and rejection of the Israeli justifications in this regard”. They also stressed that they “fully stand beside the Palestinian people and the Palestinian Authority to reach a lasting ceasefire in Gaza and put an end to repeating the brutal crimes committed by Israel against civilians and welcomed the truce reached in Gaza”. In addition, they emphasised the “need to reach a permanent agreement which ensures Israel’s implementation of its obligations without delay or procrastination, lifting the blockade on the Gaza Strip and returning life to normal for the enclave’s residents who have a right to a decent and safe life”.

The GCC ministers also expressed their “appreciation for the vital role played by Egypt to reach a ceasefire in Gaza and a permanent agreement to end the human suffering and enhance the security and stability there”.

The statement was issued before the 72-hour ceasefire between Israel and the Palestinians ended at midnight on Wednesday and the two sides announced that they had agreed to extend the truce for an additional five days.

Regarding Iraq, the foreign ministers welcomed Iraqi President Fuad Masoum’s nomination of Prime Minister Haider Al-Abadi to form a new government and the election of Salim Al-Jbouri as Parliament Speaker, hoping that the election of these three leaders and the formation of a new broad based government will promote security, stability and unity in Iraq, allowing the country to exercise its natural role in the Arab world and respond to the legitimate aspirations of the Iraqi people.

The statement stressed the GCC’s respect for Iraqi unity and sovereignty over its territory.

President Masoum nominated the former parliamentary speaker, Al-Abadi, to be the candidate of the National Alliance and to form the new government. This move received the support of the international and Arab community and was endorsed by many Iraqi blocks. However, former Prime Minister Nouri Al-Maliki and his State of Law Coalition, a component of the National Alliance, reject the move and consider it unconstitutional.