Gaza War Dominates Talks

At the opening of the Arab Summit in Baghdad, speaker after speaker has been talking about the desperate conditions under which Palestinians are living.

There is a real fear among the Arab leaders that Israel plans to ethnically cleanse Gaza, resettle the Palestinians, and depopulate this whole region.

Al Jazeera’s Zeina Khodr reports.

The Arab League Summit convenes in Baghdad with leaders from 22 member states and UN officials in attendance. The humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza and Israel’s ongoing military offensive dominate the summit’s agenda. Delegates are also addressing Iran’s nuclear program and Syria’s return to the regional fold. Calls for a unified Arab response to the Gaza crisis grow louder, as the war continues to exact a heavy toll on civilians.

Al Jazeera’s Zeina Khodr reports from Baghdad.

Mahmoud Abbas, the president of the Palestinian Authority, has now also addressed the Arab League summit in Baghdad.

Israeli actions in Gaza and the West Bank “are all part of a complete imperial enterprise [aimed] at undermining our efforts for establishing our independent state”.
We need support from “the Arab states, the US administration and the [UN] Security Council to stand up to this imperial enterprise”.
“[We must] adopt an Arab plan to end the war, establish peace, including the following: first, a permanent ceasefire, immediate release of all Palestinian detainees and Israeli captives, and the unconditional delivery of relief aid, in addition to the total withdrawal by the Israeli occupation forces from the Gaza Strip.”
Hamas and all other factions should “lay down and hand over their arms to the Palestinian Authority, the sole representative of the Palestinian people”.
An international conference should “be convened in Egypt for the implementation of the reconstruction plan in the Gaza Strip”.
We want an immediate end to Israel’s “confiscation, annexation and change of the historic and legal status in the Holy sites in Jerusalem”.
We want “the establishment of the Palestinian state on the Palestinian territories with full recognition by the world community”.

Speaking at the opening of the event, the Egyptian president said the “region is faced with complicated challenges and unprecedented conditions”.

El-Sisi called on leaders to adopt a stance “firmly united in words and in action”.

“It is no secret that the Palestinian cause is living one of its darkest and gravest moments,” he said.

“The Palestinian people are going through organized and systematic crimes, and brutal practices for more than one and a half years, aiming at exterminating and ending their existence in the Gaza Strip,” El-Sisi added.

The president stressed that “the Israeli war machine did not leave any building standing or show any mercy to any child or woman” during the war, adding that it has used “starvation as a weapon”.

UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres, speaking at the Arab League Summit in Baghdad, said he is alarmed by Israel’s plans to expand its ground operations in the Gaza Strip. He also stressed that Lebanon’s sovereignty and territorial integrity must be respected.

Iran's Supreme Leader has accused US President Donald Trump of lying when he said he wanted peace in the region. Donald Trump just wrapped up a tour of Gulf nations. A day ago, Trump said the US had sent a proposal on Iran's nuclear programme, but Tehran denied receiving it. Ali Khamenei says Trump can't be trusted.

Al Jazeera’s Tohid Asadi joins live from Tehran.