Saudi Arabia to host extraordinary joint Islamic-Arab summit today

Saudi Arabia will host an extraordinary joint Islamic-Arab summit in Riyadh on Saturday, the Saudi foreign ministry said late on Friday.

The kingdom was scheduled to host two extraordinary summits, the Organization of Islamic Cooperation summit and the Arab League summit, on Saturday. The joint summit will replace the two separate gatherings, the ministry said.

The joint meeting "will be held in response to the exceptional circumstances taking place in the Palestinian Gaza Strip as countries feel the need to unify efforts and come out with a unified collective position," it said.

The decision was taken after the Kingdom consulted with the Arab League and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, according to the statement.

On Friday, Caretaker Prime Minister Anwaarul Haq Kakar arrived in Saudi Arabia’s capital Riyadh to represent Pakistan at the emergency meeting of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) on the situation in Gaza.

Following the October 7 raid on Israel by Palestinian resistance group Hamas, Israel commenced a brutal aerial campaign against Gaza with total disregard for international law and bombed hospitals, mosques, civilian dwellings and other structures mercilessly.

Till now, at least 11,000 civilians - at least 40 per cent of them children - have died in relentless Israeli attacks.

Deputy Governor Riyadh Prince Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Abdulaziz received the prime minister on his arrival at the King Khalid International Airport earlier in the day. Pakistan’s ambassador Ahmed Farooq and senior Saudi and Pakistani officials were also present.

During his three-day official visit, the prime minister will participate in the emergency meeting being held in Riyadh, which will discuss the Israeli aggression on Gaza.