Prime Minister Najib Mikati delivered a speech at the "Extraordinary Joint Arab Islamic Summit" in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, stating: "In light of the flowing Arab blood in Palestine and Lebanon without restraint, and the cries of children and grieving women over the bodies of our martyrs, we gather today to affirm first to ourselves and then to the whole world the centrality of the Palestinian cause, both land and people, and the values we all believe in." He said: "In the face of the bloody scenes in Gaza, and the sight of childhood being slaughtered there with premeditated intent, and the scene of the deadly Israeli assault on journalists and the three girls who were martyred along with their grandmother through Israeli treachery in southern Lebanon, and the scene of systematic destruction... all expressions of condemnation fall away, proving that Israel pays no heed to them, and is undeterred by international law or human conscience. Therefore, in this moment that gathers us in the Land of the Two Holy Mosques, we are called to solidarity and joint action to save Palestine and Gaza. We have all reviewed the catastrophic situation, but we must move to the decision stage. Gaza is crying out for your help; do not turn it away empty-handed."
He added: "Palestine is, first and foremost, an Arab cause, and its catastrophe has affected our Arab world and torn it apart from east to west, and the project of expansion and displacement remains the foundation of Israeli policy. Therefore, we are called to raise a unified humanitarian voice, that the pain of Palestine is our pain, its blood is our blood, and its fate is our fate, for it is the birthplace of the Lord Christ and the night journey of the Prophet, peace be upon him. We must work together for an immediate and unconditional ceasefire, to open crossings and deliver aid to our brothers in Gaza, and to launch a serious, effective political track leading to a just, comprehensive, and lasting solution to our central cause."
He continued: "In order to reach a solution to the Arab-Israeli conflict, the 'two-state solution' remains the best path forward as we strive to build a better future for all of us based on the 'Arab Peace Initiative' launched at the Beirut Summit in 2002."
Mikati stated: "The current events in southern Lebanon, though considered a reflection of the tragedies in Gaza, are in fact just a result of the escalation of Israeli violations of national sovereignty and its continuous and prolonged breach of United Nations Resolution 1701. I personally initiated public calls to maintain calm and exercise restraint on the southern border since the outbreak of events in Gaza, and I have issued warnings against the expansion of the destructive war in Gaza to southern Lebanon and from there to the region."
He added: "Our choice in Lebanon has always been and remains peace, and our culture is one of peace based on rights, justice, international law, and the decisions of international legitimacy. However, we are a people who will not accept, nor will accept, infringements on its sovereignty, national dignity, territorial integrity, and the safety of its civilians, especially children and women.
Despite all this, we reassert today our commitment to international legitimacy—especially Resolution 1701—and emphasize the need to pressure Israel to implement all its provisions and compel it to stop its provocations and aggression against our nation."
Mikati concluded: "We have been, and still are, with Palestine, and we have paid—and continue to pay—the price of Israeli aggression. The visible weakness of the structure of our state is merely due to its location on this seismic fault that has led it into deep fragmentation and void. But we have become accustomed to your rescue, for you are its people, and I need not emphasize that all Lebanese, without exception, stand with Gaza and Palestine, hoping that all Arabs will serve as a shelter and fortress to prevent collapse."
