The 32nd Arab League Summit might have gone almost unnoticed were it not for the return of Syrian President Bashar Assad. The fact that the meeting was held in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, and hosted by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, also gave it more importance and increased the political and media attention surrounding the event.
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While the Palestinians kept their fingers crossed for their leader, President Mahmoud Abbas received a warm welcome in Jeddah and his address was reciprocated by an embrace by the family of Arab nations.
Abbas hoped that MBS would not disappoint in terms of the Palestinian issue, and he truly didn't as the matter took center stage at the event.
The Palestinian issue was and remains the central issue for Arab countries, and it is at the top of the kingdom's priorities," MSB said.
This was exactly what Abbas had hoped for, to receive a renewed pledge that Arab nations will only normalize ties with Israel if a Palestinian state is established first.
Abbas himself made this request a month ago when he visited Jordan, the first such meeting to take place between Ramallah and Riyadh in two years.
Ties between the two cooled after the signing of the Abraham Accords in 2020, when MSB said that Palestinians needed to be more flexible, which Abbas outright refused. For months after, Abbas was not welcome in Jordan and even the financial aid to the Palestinians was withdrawn.
Abbas' latest visits to Riyadh signaled a warming of ties, and even some of the aid was restored.
One Palestinian official explained that the change stems from MSB looking to solidify Jordan's status as a regional power.
"Until now, MSB has been busy with internal affairs and establishing his position within Saudi Arabia. Now he is moving to look outside, to the region, and see what he can gain. There is support from his side for the Palestinian cause and the Palestinian people, but a large part of it is motivated by interests. He wants to know what he will get out of this in the future and how Abbas can benefit him. The relationship with the Saudis has been renewed and this is an important thing, but we need to see how Saudi Arabia translates its statements into actions," he said.
Regardless, the Palestinians are thrilled with the extensive support they received at the summit and see it as a show of confidence in their cause and a signal to Israel that Saudi Arabia, and the entire Arab world in general, is not moving toward normalization with Jerusalem.
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