The new Executive Committee of the League of Parliamentarians for al-Quds and Palestine held its first meeting today, Sunday, at the League's headquarters in Istanbul.

The meeting discussed international parliamentary efforts to confront the ongoing genocide in Gaza, the League's actions in this regard, and the League's operational plan.

The meeting was chaired by the League's President, Mr. Hamid bin Abdullah Al-Ahmar, with the attendance of the Vice President of the League, Dr. Ahmed Kharchi, Deputy Speaker of the Algerian Council of the Nation; Hasan Turan, Vice President of the League and Chair of the Palestine Committee in the Turkish Parliament; and members of the Executive Committee: Abbas Zaki, Member of the Palestinian National Council; Sayyid Abu Msamah, Member of the Palestinian Legislative Council; Michele Piras, President of the European Regional League; Yanal Farihat, Member of the Jordanian House of Representatives; Asuman Erdoğan, Member of the Turkish Parliament; Clara López, Member of the Colombian Senate; and Marietou Dieng, Member of the Senegalese House of Representatives. 

Also participating in the meeting were advisory members: Dr. Mohammad Aql, Bashir Jarallah, Dr. Adil Rashid, as well as the Secretary-General of the League, Dr. Mohammad Makram Balawi, and the Head of the International Relations Department, Eng. Abdullah Al-Beltaji.

During the meeting, the President of the League, Mr. Hamid bin Abdullah Al-Ahmar, emphasized the important role of parliaments in highlighting the crimes committed in Gaza and working to stop the ongoing genocide and violations against the Palestinian people.

Mr. Hamid affirmed the League's role in continuing to rally international parliamentary support through cooperation with international and regional parliamentary institutions to take firm stances against the crimes of Israeli occupation and to act to stop this genocide and hold war criminals among the occupation leaders accountable.

During the meeting, the committee reiterated its condemnation of the arbitrary announcement by the U.S. Department of the Treasury imposing sanctions on the League's President and Yemeni Parliament member, Mr. Hamid bin Abdullah Al-Ahmar, accusing him of supporting terrorism, and called for an immediate retraction of this announcement.

The committee also urged members and parliamentarians who support the Palestinian right to work on enhancing the Palestinian narrative and to take effective action to implement practical steps to stop the Israeli genocide in Gaza and the ethnic cleansing against the Palestinian people, as well as to confront the plans for Judaization in the West Bank and occupied Jerusalem.

The League of Parliamentarians for al-Quds and Palestine elected its Executive Committee for the new term on the sidelines of the fifth conference of the League, which was held on Sunday, April 28, 2024, in Istanbul under the title "Freedom and Independence for Palestine."