Will host Arab, Islamic meets to discuss Gaza conflict: S Arabia

SINGAPORE, November 8

Saudi Arabia will host summits of Arab and Islamic nations in coming days to discuss the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, a Saudi Arabian minister said on Wednesday.

“In the next few days, Saudi Arabia will convene an emergency Arab summit in Riyadh,” said Saudi Investment Minister Khalid Al-Falih, at an event in Singapore.

“In a few days, you will see Saudi Arabia convening an Islamic summit,” he said.

“The objective of the summit and other gatherings under the leadership of Saudi Arabia will be to drive towards peaceful resolution of the conflict,” he said.

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi will travel to Saudi Arabia on Sunday for the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation summit, a news agency 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.

Meanwhile, airstrikes on the Gaza Strip killed a Hamas weapons manufacturer and several fighters, the Israeli military said on Wednesday, as its air and ground offensive targeted the militants’ tunnel network beneath the besieged Palestinian enclave.

Gaza City, the Hamas militant group’s main stronghold in the territory, is encircled by Israeli forces. The military said troops have advanced to the heart of the densely populated city while Hamas says its fighters have inflicted heavy losses.

Witnesses said thousands of people were leaving northern areas and heading south on a road controlled by Israeli tanks on Wednesday, during a daily four-hour window proclaimed by Israeli forces for civilians to leave.

Thousands others still remain inside the encircled area, including at Gaza City’s main Al Shifa hospital.

The Israeli military said on Wednesday that two separate strikes eliminated a leading Hamas armourer, Mahsein Abu Zina, and fighters engaged in anti-tank or ground-to-ground rocket fire. — Reuters