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সব প্রতিবেশীর সঙ্গে বন্ধুত্বপূর্ণ সম্পর্ক চায় বাংলাদেশ: প্রধান উপদেষ্টা বাংলাদেশে মার্কিন নিষেধাজ্ঞা আরোপে তৎপর ভারতীয় আমেরিকানরা টেস্ট ও টি-টোয়েন্টি থেকে অবসরের ঘোষণা সাকিবের প্রথমবারের মতো ইউক্রেনে রাশিয়ার আন্তমহাদেশীয় ক্ষেপণাস্ত্র হামলা কাশ্মীরে বিচ্ছিন্নতাবাদীদের হামলায় ভারতীয় সেনা নিহত সরকারের সমালোচনামূলক গান, ইরানি র‍্যাপারের মৃত্যুদণ্ড ২০ সেপ্টেম্বর থেকে বন্ধ হয়ে যাবে যাদের জিমেইল টিকটক নিষিদ্ধ হলো যুক্তরাষ্ট্রের ২০টির বেশি অঙ্গরাজ্যে সাহিত্যে নোবেল পুরস্কার পেলেন হান কাং বিশ্বসেরার স্বীকৃতি পেল ইস্তাম্বুল বিমানবন্দর গাজায় ১০০ ট্রাক ত্রাণ লুট করে নিল মুখোশ পরিহিতরা নিভে গেল বাতিঘর..... গুগল-অ্যাপলকে পেছনে ফেলে সবচেয়ে দামি ব্র্যান্ড অ্যামাজন পড়াশোনা শেষে ব্রিটেনে থাকতে পারবেন বিদেশি শিক্ষার্থীরা
Update : 16 April, 2018 20:04

Arab leaders demand probe into Syria chemical attacks

Arab leaders demand probe into Syria chemical attacks
International Desk :

An Arab League summit called on Sunday for an international probe into the “criminal” use of chemical weapons in Syria and condemned what it saw as Iran’s interference in the affairs of other countries.

Saudi Arabia and Iran have for decades been locked in a struggle for regional supremacy that is now being played out in proxy wars in several countries, including Yemen and Syria.

“We stress our absolute condemnation of the use of chemical weapons against the Syrian people and we demand an independent international investigation to guarantee the application of international law against anyone proven to have used chemical weapons,” said a statement distributed to journalists.

It emphasized the need for a political solution to the multisided Syrian war.

Saudi Arabia and its allies have expressed support for Saturday’s missile strikes by the United States, Britain and France against alleged chemical weapons facilities in Syria, while Iraq and Lebanon condemned the strikes.

Damascus denies using or possessing chemical weapons and called the strikes an act of aggression.

Military help over the past three years from Russia and Iran, which also backs Lebanon’s Hezbollah and Shiite Muslim militias in Iraq, has allowed Syrian President Bashar aAssad to crush the rebel threat to topple him.

The communique called for more international sanctions on Iran and urged it to withdraw “its militias” from Syria and Yemen.

“The summit condemned Iranian interference in the internal affairs of Arab countries, either through igniting sectarian strife or planting militias in Arab countries such as Lebanon, Iraq and Yemen, and harboring al-Qaida terrorists,” Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir told a news conference.

Iran, which denies the accusations, rejected the condemnation as the result of Saudi pressure.

“The heavy shadow of destructive Saudi policies is evident in … the final statement of the summit,” Iranian state media quoted Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Bahram Qasemi as saying in Tehran.

Saudi Arabia, which takes over the rotating chair of the Arab summit from Jordan, announced that this gathering would be named the “Quds (Jerusalem) Summit,” a reference to U.S. President Donald Trump’s decision last year to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, which Arab states condemned.

Delegates pledged to support the Palestinians, who want east Jerusalem to be the capital of a future Palestinian state. King Salman said Saudi Arabia was donating $200 million to help them, including $50 million for the U.N. Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA).

Qatar did not send a senior official, a sign that its 10-month-old dispute with Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Egypt is still a long way from being resolved.

The four countries severed diplomatic and transport ties with Qatar last June, accusing it of supporting terrorism. Doha denies the charges and says the boycott is an attempt to impinge on its sovereignty.

Its delegation was headed by its permanent representative to the Arab League, Saif bin Muqaddam al-Buainain, Qatar’s state news agency said.

Most of the 22 other countries sent heads of state or government. Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani headed Qatar’s delegation at last year’s summit in Jordan.

Sheikh Tamim returned to Doha on Saturday from a U.S. trip where he met Trump. Trump publicly sided with the Saudis and Emiratis early in the crisis but is now pushing for a resolution to restore Gulf Arab unity and maintain a united front against Iran.

Asked why Qatar was not on the summit’s agenda, the Saudi foreign minister said: “Because Qatar is not on the agenda. It’s not a big issue. It’s not a big problem. It’s a very, very small problem.”

He said the issue would be resolved if Doha met the boycotting countries’ demands, which include closing the Al Jazeera television station and reducing ties with Iran.

Tunisia will host the next Arab League summit in 2019.

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