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‘Jerusalem summit’

Apr 16,2018 - Last updated at Apr 16,2018

The 29th Arab summit was held in Dhahran amidst a growing number of threats and issues facing the Arab world and its order.

His Majesty King Abdullah delivered the opening speech in his capacity as the Chairperson of the 28th Arab summit held in Amman last year.

The King chronicled the challenges that still face the Arab countries and outlined the main features of last year's achievements and actions attained under the auspices of the 2017 Arab summit.

King Abdullah highlighted the pivotal issues that faced the Arab nation over the past year and are expected to remain on the Arab agenda for this year.

On the top of these issues is the centrality of the Palestinian conflict, including the determination to safeguard the status of East Jerusalem as the future capital of the Palestinian state.

In this vein, the King reaffirmed the Hashemite custodianship over the Islamic and Christian holy places in East Jerusalem and the will of Jordan, in cooperation with the Palestinian Authority and the support of the Arab and Islamic world, to protect these holy sites from Israeli acts of aggression or usurpation.

The King also affirmed before the Arab heads of state attending the summit that “the eternal rights of Palestinians, Arabs, Muslims and Christians to Jerusalem... is the key to peace in the region”. He also underlined that the two-state solution to the Palestinian case remains the cornerstone of Jordan's policy.

The solution of the Syrian conflict remains what King Abdullah has always called for: a political solution in which all shades of opinion or political persuasion would be invited to take part.

The success of Iraq over Daesh was also duly noted and appreciated as a critical juncture in the reconstruction of Iraq on solid grounds.

Support to the Palestinian refugees, the King cautioned, cannot be left to the whims of some powers and must remain an international responsibility until there is a permanent and just solution to the Palestinian problem.

The King has handed over the reigns of the Arab summit to the wise and able leadership of Saudi King Salman Bin Abdulaziz, who hailed the summit as the "Jerusalem summit", and that is what it was after concentrating on it during the deliberations of the 29th Arab summit by rejecting, in no uncertain terms, President Donald Trump's recognition of the holy city as the capital of Israel.

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