Arab Parliament committed to Palestine as top priority: Speaker
TASHKENT (WAM)Arab Parliament Speaker Mohammed Ahmed Al Yamahi reaffirmed the parliament's unwavering commitment to supporting Arab causes, particularly the Palestinian issue, which he described as the Arab world's foremost concern.Al Yamahi's remarks came during his address at the coordination meeting of the Arab Group at the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU), held in Tashkent ahead of the 150th IPU Assembly and related meetings, hosted by Uzbekistan from April 5-9, 2025.The meeting aimed to align Arab positions on key issues on the Assembly's agenda, discuss proposals for emergency items and agree on Arab group nominees for vacant seats on the IPU Executive Committee and its permanent and subsidiary committees.In his address, Al Yamahi emphasised that the Arab Parliament's participation reflects the growing cooperation with the Arab Inter-Parliamentary Union, strengthened by a memorandum of cooperation signed during the seventh Arab Parliament conference held in February.
He added that the parliament is committed to building on this partnership to reinforce Arab parliamentary diplomacy and serve the interests of the Arab people.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Khaleej Times
3 hours ago
- Khaleej Times
Syria evacuates Bedouin families from Druze-majority Sweida as ceasefire holds
Syrian authorities on Monday evacuated Bedouin families from the Druze-majority city of Sweida, after a ceasefire in the southern province halted a week of sectarian bloodshed that a monitor said killed more than 1,100 people. An AFP correspondent outside the devastated provincial capital saw a convoy of buses and other vehicles enter Sweida and then exit again carrying civilians, including women and children. They were headed for reception centres in neighbouring Daraa province and to the capital Damascus, in coordination with the Syrian Arab Red Crescent. State news agency SANA said 1,500 people from Bedouin tribes were to be evacuated. The ceasefire announced on Saturday put an end to the sectarian violence that has left more than 1,100 dead, most of them Druze fighters and civilians, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitor, whose toll also includes hundreds of government security personnel. Clashes began on July 13 between Druze and Bedouin tribes, who have had tense relations for decades, and were complicated by the intervention of Sunni Arab tribes who converged on Sweida in support of the Bedouin. Witnesses, Druze factions and a monitor have accused government forces of siding with the Bedouin and committing abuses including summary executions when they entered Sweida last week. "We reached a formula that allows us to defuse the crisis by evacuating the families of our compatriots from the Bedouin and the tribes who are currently in Sweida city," the province's internal security chief Ahmad Dalati told state television. The ceasefire, though announced on Saturday, only effectively began on Sunday after Bedouin and tribal fighters withdrew from parts of Sweida and Druze groups regained control. Unidentified bodies The announcement came hours after the United States said it had negotiated a ceasefire between Syria's Islamist government and Israel, which had bombed government forces in both Sweida and Damascus earlier in the week. Israel, which has its own Druze community, has said it was acting in defence of the group, as well as to enforce its demands for the total demilitarisation of Syria's south. The deal allowed the deployment of government security forces in Sweida province but not its main city. The AFP correspondent in the city said security forces had erected sand mounds to block some of Sweida's entrances. Sunni tribal fighters armed with machine guns were sitting on the roadside beyond the checkpoints, under the shade of trees. At the main hospital in Sweida city, dozens of bodies were still waiting to be identified, with a forensic medicine official at facility saying that "we still have 97 unidentified corpses". According to the United Nations, the violence has displaced more than 128,000 people, an issue that has also made collecting and identifying bodies more difficult. Health authorities have not released a comprehensive death toll. Aid convoy More than 450 bodies had been brought to the Sweida national hospital by Sunday evening, with more still being recovered from the streets and homes. "The dead bodies sent a terrible smell through all the floors of the hospital," said nurse Hisham Breik, who had not left the facility since the violence began. "The situation has been terrible. We couldn't walk around the hospital without wearing a mask," he said, his voice trembling, adding that the wounded included women, children and the elderly. The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said hospitals and health centres in Sweida province were out of service, with "reports of unburied bodies raising serious public health concerns". Humanitarian access to Sweida "remains highly constrained", it said a statement late on Sunday. On Sunday, a first humanitarian aid convoy entered the city which has seen power and water cuts and shortages of fuel, food and medical supplies. A Red Crescent official told AFP the supplies included body bags. On Monday, the Observatory said the ceasefire was holding, despite isolated gunfire in areas north of Sweida city with no reports of casualties.
Middle East Eye
3 hours ago
- Middle East Eye
Israel bombards Gaza's Deir al-Balah as 18 die from starvation
Israeli shelling pummelled the central Gaza city of Deir el-Balah on Monday as the army warned it was launching an operation "in an area where it has not operated before". The Israeli military on Sunday ordered those in the central Gaza area, thought to be between 50,000 and 80,000 people, to leave immediately. The spokesman for Gaza's civil defence agency, Mahmud Bassal, told AFP that "we received calls from several families trapped in the Al-Baraka area of Deir el-Balah due to shelling by Israeli tanks". "There are a number of wounded, but no one can reach the area to evacuate them," he said. According to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), the latest order leaves 87.8 percent of Gaza's area under "evacuation orders" or within Israeli militarised zones. New MEE newsletter: Jerusalem Dispatch Sign up to get the latest insights and analysis on Israel-Palestine, alongside Turkey Unpacked and other MEE newsletters Israel's military campaign in Gaza has killed 58,895 Palestinians since October 2023, while almost the entire population has been displaced. On Sunday, Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar said he had ordered the withdrawal of the residency permit of Jonathan Whittall, head of the OCHA in Israel. Sa'ar said Whittall had spread falsehoods about Israel's assault on Gaza, citing his "biased and hostile conduct against Israel". Whittall had previously described Palestinians in Gaza as "slowly dying" as a result of the war and Israel's blockade. Widespread hunger Palestinian health officials reported on Sunday that 18 people had died from malnutrition the previous day. They warned that hundreds more could soon face the same fate as hospitals are overwhelmed with patients suffering from dizziness and exhaustion caused by severe food shortages.
Gulf Today
4 hours ago
- Gulf Today
MBRF-organised Youth Knowledge Forum commences in Egypt
The fourth edition of the Youth Knowledge Forum (YKF), titled 'Knowledge Economy and Human Development,' commenced at the Cairo University Theatre, garnering wide participation both regionally and internationally. It is being organised by the Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Knowledge Foundation (MBRF), in collaboration with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and Egypt's Ministry of Youth and Sports (MOYS) through the Youth Knowledge Office, under the patronage of Dr. Mostafa Madbouly, Prime Minister of Egypt. The opening ceremony was attended by Dr. Ashraf Sobhy, Egypt's Minister of Youth and Sports, along with several other ministers and senior officials, including Dr. Khaled Abdel Ghaffar, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Health and Population; Dr. Ahmed Fouad Hanno, Minister of Culture; and Counsellor Mahmoud Fawzy, Minister of Parliamentary and Legal Affairs. The inaugural session was also graced by the presence of Jamal Bin Huwaireb, CEO of MBRF; Dr. Mohamed Sami Abdel Sadek, President of Cairo University; and Eng. Hany Torky, Project Manager of the Knowledge Project at UNDP, as well as a distinguished group of partners and experts. Furthermore, attendees enjoyed a vibrant lineup of musical and artistic performances by the 'Percussion' troupe. Dr. Ashraf Sobhy stressed that as the host of the Forum's fourth edition, Egypt has demonstrated its strong commitment to investing in human capital and capacity building. Moreover, he stated that the knowledge economy is the backbone of the nation's ongoing development efforts. He further stated: 'The forum serves as a dynamic platform for impactful dialogue and youth policymaking, redefining benchmarks of how government institutions should engage with youth in an era of digital and knowledge transformation. Through such initiatives, we strive to enhance the creativity, awareness, and leadership qualities of Arab youth, since empowering them today is fundamental to building a cohesive society and a sustainable, competitive economy.' Jamal Bin Huwaireb, CEO of MBRF, expressed his delight at the Forum's return to Cairo, following the success of last year's edition. He further underscored that Arab youth empowerment remains a cornerstone of the Foundation's strategic vision. Meanwhile, Eng. Hany Torky, Project Manager of UNDP's Knowledge Project, emphasised that the world's greatest challenge today is not a lack of professional opportunities, but a growing skill gap, which is hindering individuals' ability to keep pace with digital transformation and artificial intelligence. Following the opening, the first session titled 'Knowledge Economy and Human Development' was moderated by Mostafa Magdy, Assistant Minister of Youth and Sports for Strategic Affairs and Information, and a member of the Technical Secretariat of the Ministerial Group for Human Development. The session explored the importance of formulating a comprehensive vision for the knowledge economy and examined the role of Egypt's development policies in supporting the same. The event also featured a second session titled 'Formulating Development Policies in the Era of the Knowledge Economy,' which was moderated by Fathi Emad, Director of the Egyptian Knowledge Youth Office. The session facilitated discussions on enhancing public policies, in line with global shifts in knowledge and innovation. The session witnessed the participation of Dr. Ashraf Sobhy, Minister of Youth and Sports; Dr. Ahmed Fouad Hanno, Minister of Culture; Jamal Bin Huwaireb, CEO of MBRF; and Dr. Mohamed Sami Abdel Sadek, President of Cairo University. Together, they outlined Egypt's future vision for strengthening the knowledge economy, emphasising the need to invest in human capital while fostering robust collaboration between the government and other institutions to drive knowledge-based development. On the first day, the Forum facilitated six specialized panel discussions addressing a variety of key topics, including strategies for advancing the knowledge economy in Egypt, the role of international institutions in fostering a knowledge-friendly environment, the transformation of education to meet the needs of the modern era, artificial intelligence as a key driver of development, and the impact of misinformation on the economy and society. The sessions attracted wide participation from a group of leading executives and experts from prestigious organizations such as Microsoft, Uber, and Blocks 17, in addition to prominent academic and thought leaders.
