<h6><strong>Eduardo González</strong></h6> <h4><strong>The President of the Government, Pedro Sánchez, requested this Saturday the Arab League's support for the draft resolution on Gaza promoted by Spain and Palestine before the United Nations General Assembly and announced that Spain will ask the International Court of Justice (ICJ) to rule on Israel's compliance with its international obligations in the Palestinian enclave.</strong></h4> "Palestine is bleeding before our eyes. In the face of violence and barbarism, there is only the staunch defense of a world order where justice prevails," said Pedro Sánchez during his speech, as a special guest, at the opening session of the 34th Summit of the League of Arab States, held this Saturday in Baghdad, Iraq. The Prime Minister used his speech to invite the members of the League to work together to advance the draft resolution promoted by Spain and Palestine before the United Nations General Assembly. This resolution will demand that Israel end the humanitarian blockade imposed on Gaza and grant full and unrestricted access to humanitarian aid. Sánchez, the only Western leader invited to the event, traveled to Baghdad from Tirana, Albania, where he explained the content of the aforementioned draft resolution to the UN to the leaders of the European Political Community (EPC). He also announced that Spain will submit a proposal to the United Nations General Assembly requesting the International Court of Justice rule on Israel's compliance with its international obligations regarding humanitarian access to Gaza. Pedro Sánchez also advocated for promoting a political solution to this conflict through the implementation of the two-state solution. “For that purpose, Spain recognized the Palestinian State a year ago, and today I want to once again urge other countries to move forward with this recognition,” the Prime Minister continued, asserting that the international conference to be held next June in New York represents “a historic opportunity” to advance toward that goal. Sánchez also explained that another of Spain's priorities is to strengthen Euro-Arab and Islamic dialogue to resolve the conflict. In this regard, he highlighted the upcoming ministerial meeting of the Madrid Group with like-minded countries in favor of a Palestinian State, which will take place next week in the Spanish capital, as “a testament to our commitment to moving together toward peace.” Sources from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs told <em>The Diplomat</em> that the details of that meeting, which will be held at the end of the week, are still being finalized. <h5><strong>Bilateral meetings</strong></h5> During his stay in Baghdad, according to Moncloa, the President of the Government held bilateral meetings with the Prime Minister of Iraq, Mohamed Shia' Al Sudani, whom he thanked for the invitation to participate in the work of the Arab League and to whom he emphasized the "excellent state" of bilateral relations; and with the President of Palestine, Mahmoud Abbas, to whom he expressed Spain's solidarity in the face of the situation of violence and humanitarian emergency experienced by the Palestinian population, and with whom he discussed the next steps to be taken in relation to the draft resolution before the United Nations General Assembly. He also met with the Prime Minister of Lebanon, Nawaf Salam, to whom he expressed his support for the reform and reconstruction process the country is undertaking; and with the Prime Minister of Jordan, Jafar Hassan, with whom he discussed possible measures to promote stability in the region.
