Rhino: Agencies – Leaders of Arab and Islamic countries met on Monday in Riyadh for an extraordinary Arab and Islamic summit on the situations in Gaza and Lebanon with the aim of unifying visions and positions and following up on the outcomes of a similar joint summit held last year before the expansion of the conflict in the region.

Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas denounced the failure of the international community to stop the war in Gaza and the United States’ support for Israel in its ongoing attack on the Gaza Strip, especially its recent decision to stop cooperation with the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA).

In his speech, he called for “the implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 2735 to stop the Israeli aggression and ensure humanitarian access to the Gaza Strip, the withdrawal of the occupation from the Strip, the assumption by the State of Palestine of its sovereign responsibilities, and the return of displaced persons to their homes, in preparation for the reconstruction of what was destroyed by the occupation.”

Abbas also appealed to the UN Security Council to “suspend Israel’s membership in the United Nations unless it abides by international law and its documented and signed commitments and ends its crimes against the Palestinian people.”

Israel and Hamas accuse each other of obstructing efforts to reach a ceasefire in Gaza and exchange prisoners and hostages between the two sides.