LONDON: Jordan’s King Abdullah II on Saturday discussed the situation in the Palestinian territories with French President Emmanuel Macron, where he reiterated the need “to end unilateral Israeli actions that undermine peace prospects.”
Speaking during a phone call, the two sides also held talks on ways to expand bilateral cooperation, especially in areas related to food security, and regional development, the kingdom’s state news agency Petra reported.
The Jordanian monarch congratulated Macron on his re-election and wished him success in leading his country to “greater progress and prosperity,” Petra added.
Meanwhile, Macron also held a call with his Palestinian counterpart Mahmoud Abbas to discuss the latest political developments in the occupied territories, and ways to strengthen relations between France and Palestine and with the European Union as France holds presidency of the EU council.
“Macron affirmed to President Mahmoud Abbas France’s unyielding support for peace and its continued efforts with the concerned sides and all international parties to stop the current escalation and move forward the initiatives that lead to the desired political horizon,” Palestinian news agency Wafa reported.
Abbas briefed him on the ongoing Israeli escalations against the Palestinian people, particularly in Jerusalem, including the expulsion of Palestinians from their homes, killing the defenseless Palestinians, including children, settlement construction, and settler extremism, and Israeli attacks on Christian and Islamic holy sites, especially the the Al-Aqsa mosque.
He stressed the need for the international community to take deterrent measures against Israeli practices, “because the situation on the ground is no longer acceptable.”
Macron invited the Palestinian leader to visit France in the coming period.
France’s Macron holds calls with Jordan’s king, Palestinian president
https://arab.news/j2gbq
France’s Macron holds calls with Jordan’s king, Palestinian president
- They discusses the latest political developments in the Palestinian territories
Iraqi army fully takes over key base following US withdrawal
BAGHDAD: US forces have fully withdrawn from an air base in western Iraq in implementation of an agreement with the Iraqi government, Iraqi officials said Saturday.
Washington and Baghdad agreed in 2024 to wind down a US-led coalition fighting the Daesh group in Iraq by September 2025, with US forces departing bases where they had been stationed.
However, a small unit of US military advisers and support personnel remained. Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani in October told journalists that the agreement originally stipulated a full pullout of US forces from the Ain Al-Asad air base in western Iraq by September. But “developments in Syria” since then required maintaining a “small unit” of between 250 and 350 advisers and security personnel at the base.
Now all US personnel have departed.
Iraqi Army Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Abdul Amir Rashid Yarallah oversaw the assignment of tasks and duties to various military units at the base on Saturday following the withdrawal of US forces and the Iraqi Army’s full assumption of control over the base, the military said in a statement.
The statement added that Yarallah “instructed relevant authorities to intensify efforts, enhance joint work, and coordinate between all units stationed at the base, while making full use of its capabilities and strategic location.”
A Ministry of Defense official who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to comment publicly confirmed that all US forces had departed the base and had also removed all American equipment from it.
There was no statement from the US military on the withdrawal.
US forces have retained a presence in the semi-autonomous Kurdish region in northern Iraq and in neighboring Syria.
The departure of US forces may strengthen the hand of the government in discussions around disarmament of non-state armed groups in the country, some of which have used the presence of US troops as justification for keeping their own weapons.
Al-Sudani said in a July interview with The Associated Press that once the coalition withdrawal is complete, “there will be no need or no justification for any group to carry weapons outside the scope of the state.”
