Arab League: Gaza Crisis Demonstrates Great Role Of Youth, Civil Society

(MENAFN- Kuwait News Agency (KUNA)) CAIRO, Oct 24 (KUNA) -- The Arab League said on Tuesday that the ongoing crisis in the Gaza Strip has demonstrated the great role of civil society and Palestinian and Arab youth in general, as they are at the forefront of efforts to support the Palestinian people and expose Israeli war crimes.
This came in a speech by the Assistant Secretary General and Head of the Social Affairs Sector at the Arab League Ambassador Haifa Abu Ghazaleh, at the opening of the "Civil Society" and "Arab Youth" forums on food security, held for two days, within the framework of the ongoing preparations for holding the fifth session of the Arab Economic and Social Development Summit in Mauritania.
The forum is based on three main points, namely civil society, Arab youth, and food security, Abu Ghazaleh explained.
The role of civil society in this defining moment in history is fully embodied in the civil society organizations that have been working in Palestine over the past decades, she pointed out.
Civil society provides humanitarian aid and supports the families of prisoners and martyrs psychologically and financially through hospitals and private schools, she said, adding that human rights organizations in Palestine also monitor and document the crimes of the Israeli occupation and expose them before international forums.
Regarding Arab youth, anyone who sees the data and statistics about the youth of Gaza is struck by astonishment. Although the percentage of youth in Palestine is less than the global percentage and one of the lowest percentages in the Arab world, their efforts are noticed at every turn of events.
As for the third point which is food security, it has become out of reach with the crimes of blockade and destruction being committed against Palestine as the Israeli occupation completely cuts off food, water, and medicine from Gaza, she mentioned.
Abu Ghazaleh underscored that the Israeli occupation is committing genocide in cold blood before the eyes of the international community, as if this crime is a warning to everyone to rearrange priorities.
On his side, the Egyptian Minister of Youth and Sports and Head of the Executive Office of the Council of Arab Youth and Sports Ministers Dr. Ashraf Sobhy confirmed in his speech that the office will provide support to Palestinian youth and will also participate in all joint Arab activities to alleviating the impact of the current tragic events.
The brutal aggression that Palestine is suffering is hampering Arab efforts to establish peace and security in the region, he noted, adding that what makes the matter even more unjust and dark are the scenes of children, women, the elderly, and the destruction of infrastructure.
On the issue of Arab youth, he stressed that the Ministry of Youth and Sports in Egypt is putting all its capabilities into promoting friendship between young people in all parts of the Arab world.
Meanwhile, Chairman of the Arab Gulf Programme for Development (AGFUND) Prince Abdulaziz bin Talal expressed in his speech the sorrow and pain over the death toll and the injured, especially among children, women and the elderly in Gaza, calling for rationality and an urgent halt to all violence and achieving protection for civilians.
He underscored that food security is an urgent issue that affects the lives and health of millions of people worldwide, as 54 million people in Arab countries suffer from acute food insecurity and multiple forms of malnutrition.
Food security problems have worsened and malnutrition rates have increased in the Arab region due to international crises such as the COVID-19 pandemic, the Russian-Ukrainian crisis, in addition to climate change, he pointed out. (end)
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