0225 GMT — Saudi Arabia says will host Arab and Islamic summits to discuss Gaza war
Saudi Arabia will host summits of Arab and Islamic nations in coming days to discuss the Israel-Palestine war, Saudi Arabia’s investment minister has said.
“We will see, this week, in the next few days Saudi Arabia convening an emergency Arab summit in Riyadh,” said Saudi investment minister Khalid Al-Falih, at the Bloomberg New Economy Forum in Singapore.
“In a few days you will see Saudi Arabia convening an Islamic summit,” he said.
“In the short term, the objective of bringing these three summits and other gatherings under the leadership of Saudi Arabia would be to drive towards peaceful resolution of the conflict.”
Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi will travel to Saudi Arabia on Sunday for the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation summit, Etemad online news reported, the first visit by an Iranian head of state since Tehran and Riyadh ended years of hostility under a China-brokered deal in March.
Falih also said Saudi Arabia would convene a summit with African nations, without specifying a date.
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0300 GMT — Rashida Tlaib censured for remarks over Israel war’s in Gaza
The US House has voted to censure Democratic Rep. Rashida Tlaib of Michigan — the only Palestinian American in Congress — an extraordinary rebuke.
The 234-188 tally came after enough Democrats joined with Republicans to censure Tlaib, a punishment one step below expulsion from the House. The three-term congresswoman has long been a target of criticism for her views on the decades-long conflict in the Middle East.
Republican Rep. Rich McCormick of Georgia pushed the censure measure in response to what he called Tlaib’s promotion of antisemitic rhetoric. He said she has “levied unbelievable falsehoods about our greatest ally, Israel, and the attack on October 7.”
With other Democrats standing by her side, Tlaib defended her stance, saying she “will not be silenced and I will not let you distort my words.”
Tlaib added that her criticism of Israel has always been directed toward its government and its leadership under Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
“It is important to separate people and government,” she said. “The idea that criticising the government of Israel is antisemitic sets a very dangerous precedent. And it’s been used to silence diverse voices speaking up for human rights across our nation.”
0234 GMT — G7’s top diplomats discuss what happens after Gaza conflict
G7 foreign ministers have discussed how to revitalise peace efforts in the Middle East and the “day after” in Gaza once the conflict there recedes as they met for a two-day summit in Tokyo.
The subject was brought up during a working dinner, host Japan said in a statement, with the Group of Seven (G7) due to continue talks on Wednesday on the Israel-Palestine crisis, Russia’s war in Ukraine and issues related to China.
The statement gave no details of options being discussed if the Hamas is ousted from Gaza as the result of an ongoing Israeli bombardment of the Palestinian enclave.
2100 GMT — Biden asks Netanyahu for pause as Israel rains down death upon Gaza
US President Joe Biden has said that he asked Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for a pause in its war on besieged Gaza during a call on Monday.
A White House spokesperson previously said the two leaders discussed the potential for “tactical pauses” in fighting in Gaza for humanitarian reasons and possible hostage releases during their conversation on Monday.
US Vice President Kamala Harris, meanwhile, emphasised in a call with Israeli President Isaac Herzog the importance of protecting civilian lives and respecting international humanitarian law, the White House said in a separate statement.
Countries across the world are witnessing large pro-Palestine demonstrations since the Hamas blitz on October 7, which killed 1,400 people, according to Israeli officials.
The Gaza-based resistance group says it launched Operation Al Aqsa Flood against Israel in response to the storming of Al Aqsa Mosque in occupied East Jerusalem and increased settler violence in occupied West Bank.
Since then, Israel has relentlessly bombarded the Palestinian territory and sent in ground troops, killing more than 10,300 Palestinians, mostly children and women, wounding thousands and displacing over a million in the tiny enclave.
The Israeli army released a video that reportedly shows a group of forcibly displaced Palestinians in Gaza. The video was described by Palestinian authorities as an Israeli ‘psychological operation’ pic.twitter.com/k1VtLTRCGC
— TRT World (@trtworld) November 7, 2023
Source : TRT WORLD
