Chairman of the African Union Commission, Moussa Faki Mahamat, said that Gaza is being completely annihilated (French)

On Saturday, the leaders of the African Union countries began a two-day summit in Addis Ababa, in light of coups, conflicts and political crises that threaten to undermine development on the continent.

The 37th African Summit opened on the impact of the Israeli aggression on the Gaza Strip, where the Chairman of the African Union Commission, Moussa Faki Mahamat, said in the opening speech that the International Court of Justice’s decision regarding the crimes of genocide committed by Israel “is a victory for all countries that support the Palestinian cause.”

Faki also explained that “Gaza is being completely annihilated and its people are deprived of all their rights,” saying that he “denounces the Israeli operation, which has no parallel in the history of humanity,” before adding that “the Palestinian people must enjoy their full freedom and their independent, sovereign state.”

He stressed his support for South Africa's position, calling for the implementation of the decisions of the International Court of Justice and an end to the killing in Gaza.

The Chairman of the African Union Commission said last Wednesday - during the opening of the meeting of the Executive Council of the African Union, which includes the foreign ministers of member states - that “Sudan is on fire, and Somalia is still vulnerable to the jihadist threat,” also pointing to “the situation in the Horn of Africa, which continues to raise concerns.” .permanent tensions in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo,” instability in Libya and the “terrorist threat” in the Sahel region.

He stressed that "renewed military coups, acts of violence before and after elections, and humanitarian crises related to war and/or the effects of climate change are all sources of very great concern to us."

He pointed out that these factors “seriously threaten to undermine the indicators of Africa’s progress that we cherish.”

Six of the 55 member states were absent from the summit, after their membership was suspended due to coups, as Gabon and Niger joined the banned countries in 2023, namely Mali, Guinea, Sudan, and Burkina Faso.

New president of the union

On the eve of the opening of the summit, the African Union mediator, Angolan President João Lourenço, gathered a number of African heads of state in Addis Ababa to discuss the situation in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, in the presence of Congolese President Felix Tshisekedi.

Since the end of 2021, eastern Democratic Congo has once again witnessed a conflict between the M23 rebels, supported, according to many sources, by the Rwandan army, and the Congolese army, which is supported in particular by armed groups known as the “Patriots.”

The African Union summit is also being held at a time when Senegal, known as an oasis of stability on the continent, has descended into a serious crisis since early February, as a result of President Macky Sall’s postponement of the presidential elections.

However, on Thursday evening, the Constitutional Court invalidated this decision, which contributed to deepening the feeling of uncertainty, while Macky Sall pledged on Friday to organize presidential elections “as soon as possible.”

As confirmed by the President of the Comoros and the current President of the African Union, Azali Assoumani, an agreement was finally reached on the personality of Mauritanian President Mohamed Ould Ghazouani, who is scheduled to be elected on Saturday as the next President of the Union.

During this summit, heads of state will discuss “new working methods...to develop an African position” during the G20 meetings, according to Paul Simon Handy, regional director at the Institute for Security Studies.

In addition to African leaders, UN Secretary-General António Guterres and Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva will speak during the opening ceremony.

Source: Al Jazeera + French