November 12, 2024
Nasser Kandil
• As much as the Arab-Islamic Summit echoed statements from previous years regarding the priority of a ceasefire in Gaza and Lebanon, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s speech at the summit diverged from the prevailing atmosphere, setting it apart from his past summit appearances. In the first of these prior meetings, which symbolised Syria’s return to summit activities, Assad spoke broadly about the Arab state, solidarity, unity, and the need for institutional solutions. In the second, he chose to convey what needed to be said without sparking tensions with Arab countries, where relations remain chilly despite the reopening of embassies in Damascus. These states remain hesitant to fully normalise ties with Syria, fearing backlash from the U.S., which continues to occupy Syrian land, enforce economic strangulation, and block any attempts to break the embargo.
• Assad’s remarks were straightforward and logical, yet he refrained from outlining specific steps to gauge Arab and Islamic seriousness, though the necessary actions were implicit in his speech. Assad highlighted that while the Arab diagnosis of the situation and their outlined solutions may be accurate, their statements are ineffective. The brutality of Israeli crimes is undeniable, as is the Western and particularly American complicity in overlooking these atrocities. This reality has been acknowledged since last year’s Arab-Islamic summit, which concluded with a call for a ceasefire through a UN mandate under Chapter VII. However, Assad questioned why such calls have gone unheeded, attributing it to a lack of effective measures from the summit to change this global indifference toward Arab and Muslim condemnation of occupation crimes. This global indifference effectively makes international actors complicit in the crimes, while the summit’s failure to activate Arab and Islamic leverage can be seen as a form of complicity as well.
• This leverage does not necessarily imply military action, though it remains a duty to defend Gaza and Lebanon. Instead, Assad pointed to the many non-military tools at the disposal of Arabs and Muslims, including severing diplomatic and economic ties with the occupying entity, leveraging the vast Arab and Muslim financial capital – exceeding a trillion dollars invested in Western banks – and exerting influence as leaders in the global energy market. Additionally, hosting U.S. military bases, which often support the entity, especially in conflicts like the war on Yemen, represents a powerful lever for change. By applying such pressure, the Arab world could shift the American veto on ceasefire resolutions, enabling negotiations to end the war.
• Although Asad spoke for a few minutes, he reignited the spirit of his earlier speeches, reminiscent of his address prior to the Iraq invasion in 2002. His statements resonated with those aware of its truthfulness, including the Arab and Muslim leaders present. The core of his message was that Arabs are on the periphery of events, evidenced by America’s disregard for their stance in its unwavering support of occupation crimes. Assad’s point is that while an accurate diagnosis of the problem and its remedy is essential, true recovery requires implementing the prescribed remedy, which involves deploying the tools and resources at hand – a discussion absent from the summit. This failure leaves Arabs and Muslims in a position of passive tolerance and, by extension, complicit in the crimes.
• Assad reemerged as the defining presence at the Arab-Islamic summits, overshadowing even attempted focus on trivialities, such as the Turkish President’s absence during his speech. Assad’s address was the sole speech worthy of attentive thought.
• Meanwhile, the resistance underscored Assad’s words with a barrage of rockets targeting the entity, a message the occupiers could understand. Assad’s words laid an intellectual and cultural foundation for the resistance’s stance. He hit the mark on the field despite numerous other players, unable to do the same. This war will not end until the occupier imposes its terms or is forced to retreat through activated resistance strategies. The entire region awaits this critical moment. With the summit’s applause as its only acknowledgment of Assad’s words, the resistance forces beyond the summit – in Lebanon, Yemen, and Iraq – were already responding in action, bringing Assad’s call for assertive leverage to life beyond the summit hall.
