DHAHRAN, SAUDI ARABIA: Arab leaders—minus Syrian President Bashar al-Assad—meet in Saudi Arabia for a summit on Sunday as world powers face off over Syria and tensions rise between Riyadh and Tehran. Saudi Arabia is pushing for a tough, unified stance against its regional arch-rival Iran at the annual gathering of the 22-member Arab League. The two regional titans, locked in proxy wars in Syria and in Saudi Arabia’s southern neighbor Yemen, back opposing parties in Iraq and Lebanon. The summit begins 24 hours after the United States, France and Britain launched controversial air strikes in war-torn Syria in response to a reported regime chemical attack on the decimated rebel enclave of Eastern Ghouta last week. Saudi Arabia and Qatar, which both voiced support for the strikes, remain locked in a months-long diplomatic standoff, with Riyadh accusing Doha of supporting Islamist extremists and being too close to Iran. </s> Qatar has officially been invited to attend this year's Arab League summit, set to be held in Riyadh on April 15.

"The state of Qatar has received the invitation to participate in the Arab Summit, and will participate, but we have not yet decided the level of participation", Lulwa al-Khater, a spokesperson for Qatar's foreign ministry, said on Wednesday.

Crown Prince Mohamed bin Salman (or MbS as he is often referred to) announced earlier in March that while he would not accept outside mediation in the resolution of the Gulf crisis, this would not stop Qatar from attending an Arab League summit in Saudi Arabia.

"We will not accept any resolution to the crisis [with Qatar] outside an Arab or a Gulf framework, but that does not mean we will bar Qatar from attending the upcoming Arab summit", MbS told reporters during an official visit to Egypt.

To be sure, the Arab League's internal regulations require that host countries extend official invitations to all member-states.

A quartet of countries made up of Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates have imposed a sea, land and air blockade on Qatar in June 2017, accusing it of supporting terrorism and destabilising the region, charges Doha denies. </s> Qatar will not be represented by a senior official at an Arab summit taking place in Saudi Arabia on Sunday, in a sign that a nearly year-old dispute between Gulf Arab neighbours is still a long way from being resolved.

Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Egypt severed diplomatic and economic ties with Qatar in June 2017, accusing it of supporting terrorism. Doha denies the charges and says the boycott is an attempt to impinge on its sovereignty.

The Qatari delegation will be headed by Doha's permanent representative to the Arab League, Saif bin Muqaddam al-Buainain, the state news agency said without elaborating.

Most of the 22 other countries are represented by heads of state or government. Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani headed Qatar's delegation at last year's Arab summit in Jordan.

Sheikh Tamim returned to Doha on Saturday from a U.S. trip where he met President Donald Trump, who had publicly sided with the Saudis and Emiratis early in the crisis, but is now pushing for a resolution to restore Gulf Arab unity and maintain a united front against Iran.

Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir said on Thursday that Qatar's crisis would not be on the table at the Arab League summit, Al Arabiya reported.

Ahead of the summit, the four boycotting nations reaffirmed that their demands on Qatar — including closing Al Jazeera television station and reducing ties with Iran — were "a necessary basis" for a resolution to the crisis.

The summit is expected to focus heavily on Syria and Iran.

Saudi Arabia is pushing for a tough, unified stance against its regional rival Iran at the annual gathering of the 22-member Arab League.

The two regional titans, locked in proxy wars in Syria and in Saudi Arabia's southern neighbor Yemen, back opposing parties in Iraq and Lebanon.

The summit begins 24 hours after the U.S., France and Britain launched controversial missile strikes in war-torn Syria in response to a reported Assad regime chemical attack on the decimated opposition enclave of eastern Ghouta last week. </s> TUNIS (Reuters) - Arab leaders, long divided by regional rivalries, condemned on Sunday a U.S. decision to recognize Israel’s sovereignty over the Golan Heights and said Middle East stability depended on creating an Palestinian state.

Arab leaders, gathering at summit in Tunis, have been under popular pressure to reject Washington’s action, while they also grapple with regional differences, including a bitter Gulf Arab dispute, splits over Iran’s regional influence, the war in Yemen and unrest in Algeria and Sudan.

The abrupt departure from the summit of Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani, who is locked in a row with Saudi Arabia and other Arab allies, suggested regional differences were not easily buried. No reason was given for his departure.

Saudi Arabia’s King Salman bin Abdulaziz told Arab monarchs, presidents and prime ministers at the meeting that his country “absolutely rejects” any measures affecting Syria’s sovereignty over the Golan Heights.

President Donald Trump’s signed a proclamation last week recognizing the Golan Heights as part of Israel, which annexed the area in 1981 after capturing it from Syria in 1967.

The Saudi king’s condemnation echoed those of Arab officials before Sunday’s summit of the Arab League, which usually ends with a final declaration agreed by the 22 member states.

Trump’s Golan decision followed a U.S. move less than four months ago to recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, a decision that also drew Arab condemnation. Palestinians want East Jerusalem as the capital of a future state.

Tunisian President Beji Caid Essebsi said Arab leaders also needed to ensure the international community understood the importance of the Palestinian cause to Arab nations.

Regional and international stability should come through “a just and comprehensive settlement that includes the rights of the Palestinian people and leads to the establishment of a Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital,” Essebsi said.

U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, who addressed the meeting in Tunis, said any resolution to the Syrian conflict must guarantee the territorial integrity of Syria “including the occupied Golan Heights”.

The Tunis summit brought together the rulers of Saudi Arabia and Qatar for the first time at the same gathering since 2017 when Riyadh and its allies imposed a political and economic boycott on Doha.

But Qatar’s emir left the summit hall shortly after Arab League Secretary-General Ahmed Aboul Gheit praised the way Saudi Arabia handled its rotating Arab League presidency last year, live television footage showed.

Qatar’s state news agency did not say why Tamim left, but Tunisia’s state news agency TAP said the rest of Qatar’s delegation stayed.

Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Egypt accuse Qatar of supporting terrorism and say it has been cosying up to Iran, a charge Doha denies.

The row has defied mediation efforts by Kuwait and the United States, which called Gulf Arab states to unite in opposition to Iranian influence in the region.

King Salman, whose country has long vied with Iran for influence, called for confronting what he called the “aggressive policies of the Iranian regime”. He said Iran was interfering in Arab affairs, a charge Tehran dismisses.

Arab states remain divided over other issues, including how to deal with pro-democracy protests that have erupted in the region since 2011.

The leaders of Sudan and Algeria were not at Sunday’s meeting as both nations have been roiled by anti-government protests.

Syria’s seat at the summit was vacant. Damascus as been suspended from the League since 2011 over its crackdown on protesters at the start of its civil war. The League has said no consensus has yet been reached to allow Syria’s reinstatement. </s> By The Associated Press

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Leaders in Qatar and Saudi Arabia have had their first high-level contact since a diplomatic crisis engulfing Doha began three months ago, but the terms of what was discussed are now in dispute.

Both governments acknowledged early Saturday that Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman spoke with Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani.

The state-run Qatar News Agency then published an account of the call saying the two countries agreed to send envoys to resolve the ongoing diplomatic crisis.

A short time later, the state-run Saudi Press Agency published a statement disputing that, saying the call was at Qatar’s request and all communication would be cut off over this newest dispute.

Four Arab nations began their boycott of Qatar on June 5. Mediation efforts so far have stalled. </s> Leaders in Qatar and Saudi Arabia have had their first high-level contact since a diplomatic crisis engulfing Doha began three months ago, but the terms of what was discussed are now in dispute.

Both governments acknowledged early Saturday that Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman spoke with Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani.

The state-run Qatar News Agency then published an account of the call saying the two countries agreed to send envoys to resolve the ongoing diplomatic crisis.

A short time later, the state-run Saudi Press Agency published a statement disputing that, saying the call was at Qatar’s request and all communication would be cut off over this newest dispute.

Four Arab nations began their boycott of Qatar on June 5. Mediation efforts so far have stalled. </s> Mecca – The 14th Islamic Summit hosted by the Organization of Islamic Cooperation has commenced in the al-Safa Palace in Mecca, with the attendance of Saudi King Salman bin Abdulaziz and several heads of state from the Arab and Islamic world.

The summit this year is titled “Mecca Summit: Together for the Future,” and aims at developing a unified stance on events in the Islamic world.

The main topics of discussions for the summit will focus on the question of Palestine, Islamophobia, countering extremism and terrorism, and the situation of Muslims around the world.

Among the speakers expected to address the summit are Saudi King Salman bin Abdulaziz, Bahraini King Hamad bin Isa al-Khalifa, OIC Secretary-General Yousef bin al-Othaimeen and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi.

Speaking to Al Arabiya earlier in the day, the OIC’s Secretary-General said that the Summit will complement the two previous Gulf and Arab summits held in Mecca on Thursday in its discussions regarding Iran’s disruptive activities both in the Arab and Islamic regions.

“The stance of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation is clear and direct, that we are with the legitimate government of Yemen. We condemn all the actions perpetrated by the Houthis. We also condemn the countries which support the Houthis either financially, by supplying them with weapons, or those who provide them with a political cover. We support the stance taken by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Arab Coalition against the Houthis. At one point, even the Houthis attempted to launch a missile targeting Mecca,” OIC Secretary-General Yousef bin Al-Othaimeen told Al Arabiya.

Analysts also weighed in during the day, saying they expect the Islamic summit to support the policies in place regarding Iran.

“It was clear that both the Gulf and Arab emergency meetings were direct and unified in their stance regarding the Iranian file and we expect that the Islamic Summit’s agenda and final communique will not only complement the previous two summits but also take practical steps in how to implement future policies in order to tackle the issues at hand,” Hamoud Abutaleb, said a Saudi political writer.

For his part, Radwan Buhaidel, an Algerian political researcher, told Al Arabiya that three summits come at a pivotal time in the region, especially after the exceptional circumstances in recent weeks.

“These summits primarily address Iranian aggression, especially after the attacks on oil pipelines in Saudi Arabia and the maritime attack on the ships off the coast of the UAE. While the two Gulf and Arab summits were unified among Arab brethren regarding the issue, the Islamic Summit will focus on dealing with Iran on a wider scale as it affects other Islamic countries near the region,” Buhaidel said.

“While Iran is still one of the main topics of discussions during the last day of the Mecca Summits, the Islamic Summit hosted by the OIC will probably give a priority to the Palestinian cause as well,” he added. </s> Leaders meeting in Tunisia for the annual Arab League summit were united in their condemnation of Trump administration policies seen as unfairly biased toward Israel.

This year’s summit comes against a backdrop of ongoing wars in Syria and Yemen, rival authorities in Libya and a lingering boycott of Qatar by four fellow League members.

Algeria’s president Abdelaziz Bouteflika and Sudan’s president Omar al-Bashir skipped the meeting as they contend with mass protests against their long reigns.

Representatives from the 22-member league — not including Syria — aim to jointly condemn US President Donald Trump’s recognition of Israeli control over the Golan Heights, which Israel seized from Syria in the 1967 war, and Mr Trump’s decision last year to recognise Jerusalem as Israel’s capital.

But they remain divided on a host of other issues, including whether to readmit founding member Syria.

At the opening of the summit, King Salman said Saudi Arabia “absolutely rejects any measures undermining Syria’s sovereignty over the Golan Heights” and supports the creation of a Palestinian state in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, with east Jerusalem as its capital.

He added that Iran’s meddling was to blame for instability in the region.

One of the few things that has united the Arab League over the last 50 years is the rejection of Israel’s occupation of the Golan Heights as well as east Jerusalem and the West Bank, territories seized in the 1967 war that the Palestinians want for their future state.

The international community, including the United States, largely shared that position until Mr Trump upended decades of US policy by moving the American Embassy to Jerusalem last year and recognising Israel’s 1981 annexation of the strategic Golan plateau earlier this month.

The Arab leaders meeting in Tunisia are expected to issue a statement condemning those moves, but are unlikely to take any further action.

This is in part because regional powerhouses Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates have cultivated close ties with the Trump administration, viewing it as a key ally against their main rival, Iran.

Both face Western pressure over their devastating three-year war with Yemen’s Houthi rebels, and Riyadh is still grappling with the fallout from the killing of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi by Saudi agents last year.

Lebanon’s foreign minister Gebran Bassil said on Saturday that Arab ministers had voiced support in a preparatory meeting for a declaration that Mr Trump’s Golan move violates the UN Charter, which prohibits acquiring territories by force.

In Syria, small protests against Mr Trump’s Golan move were held in different parts of the country and state media criticised the Arab summit.

“The Golan is not awaiting support from the Arabs, and not a statement to condemn what Trump has done,” the Thawra newspaper said in an editorial that accused Arab leaders of taking their orders from the US and Israel.

The Arab League is expected to consider readmitting Syria, a founding member that was expelled in the early days of the 2011 uprising against President Bashar Assad.

But officials speaking ahead of the meeting said it was unlikely Syria would be welcomed back anytime soon.

The United Arab Emirates reopened its embassy in Damascus last year, and other Arab states have expressed support for restoring relations.

But Saudi Arabia and Qatar have actively supported the rebels trying to overthrow Mr Assad, and many other states view his government as an Iranian proxy that should be shunned.

In a rare sign of easing tensions across another regional rift, King Salman and Qatar’s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani sat at the same sprawling table when the heads of delegations met on Sunday.

It is the first time the two leaders have appeared in the same room since Saudi Arabia led the boycott of Qatar nearly two years ago over Doha’s ties to Iran and its support for regional Islamist groups. </s> Arab leaders meet in Tunisia with eye on Trump's Golan move

TUNIS, Tunisia (AP) — Arab leaders are meeting in Tunisia's capital hoping to project unified opposition to President Donald Trump's recognition of Israel's sovereignty over the occupied Golan Heights.

The annual Arab League summit is taking place Sunday. The leaders of Algeria, Sudan and Morocco have announced they are skipping the meeting.

Arab League spokesman Mahmoud Afifi says the 22-member bloc will aim to issue a proclamation affirming the international consensus that the Golan is occupied Syrian land.

The annual gathering will also look into readmitting Syria's membership in the Arab League, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the Saudi Arabia-Iran rivalry and the war in Yemen.

The pan-Arab bloc froze Syria's membership in 2011 over a bloody government crackdown on protesters.

Many Arab countries have recently renewed ties with the government of President Bashar Assad.
The Arab League summits in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, their first meeting since the Qatar diplomatic crisis, focused on Jerusalem and Iran.