The 22nd Arab Summit began in Algiers this evening

The Arab summit hosted by Algeria, under the slogan “Reunification”, begins on Tuesday evening, following a 3-year hiatus, during which divisions continued over several regional files.

Participants from Arab leaders and leaders discuss the “Algiers Declaration” document, on which Arab Foreign Ministers agree at their 3-day meetings.

The document contains provisions on the question of Palestine, Arab security and crises in 6 Arab States that suffer from a lack of stability.

Al Jazeera’s correspondent from Algeria, Atef Qadadadra, said that the agenda to be considered by the leaders included some 20 items, including the formation of the Algerian Arab Group to follow up on the implementation of the Algiers Declaration on Palestinian Reconciliation.

Discussions will also include Algeria’s Arab League reform file.

Algeria prepared to host the Arab Summit by tightening security measures, raising States’ flags and presenting the historical monuments of the participating States.

Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune said that the Arab summit in Algeria would mark a new start to activate and consolidate joint Arab action as aspired to by Arab peoples.

Tebbboune stressed that Algeria was making vigorous efforts to be the 31st Arab Summit an opportunity to re-infuse the spirit of solidarity and rearrange the Arab House.

The summit will be held on the first and second days of November with the slogan “Reunification”. Official representation at the Algiers Summit confirms the presence of two thirds of Arab leaders, along with low representation of five other countries, as Syria’s seat continues to be frozen.

According to a monitoring by the Anadolu Agency of data from the countries of the League of Arab States, the Emir of Qatar, the Presidents of Egypt, Palestine, Mauritania, Iraq, Tunisia, Comoros and Somalia will participate in the summit.

The Presidents of the Presidential Councils of the Sudan, Yemen and Libya, together with the Vice-President of the United Arab Emirates and the Crown Prince of Kuwait and Jordan, also participate.

At a low level between a Head of Government, a Deputy Prime Minister and a representative of the President, the King or a Minister, Saudi Arabia, Morocco, the Sultanate of Oman, Bahrain and Lebanon are represented.

Syria’s seat in the corridors of the Arab summit continues to be frozen due to the decision of the Arab League in November 2011 to suspend its membership as President Bashar al-Assad’s regime adopted the military option to quell popular protests that erupted in March of the same year to demand a peaceful circulation of power.

On Monday, Arab Foreign Ministers held a closed consultative meeting to finalize the draft statement “Algiers Declaration”.

The declaration is expected to be presented to the Arab summit, which will begin at the leaders’ level on Tuesday evening.

The 22-nation League of Arab States held its last summit in March 2019 in Tunis before the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic.