Arab League chief urges Trump to rein in Israeli policies against Palestinians, warns region nearing ‘moment of explosion’

Arab League Secretary-General Nabil Fahmy on Sunday demanded US President Donald Trump rein in Israeli policies on Palestinians, warning the region is nearing a “moment of explosion.”

“The situation in the region is heading toward a very dangerous point and is approaching a moment of explosion on more than one level,” Fahmy said in a statement ahead of a planned meeting between Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Washington on Tuesday.

He attributed the current state of tension “to the deadlock facing the Palestinian issue,” and “the reckless escalation and brinkmanship policies that characterize the Gulf crisis.”

The Israeli army killed more than 73,000 people and injured 174,000 others in a brutal offensive in Gaza since October 2023. Tel Aviv also escalated attacks in the occupied West Bank, killing nearly 1,200 Palestinians during the same period.

Israel and the US also launched joint attacks on Iran in February, pushing Tehran to launch retaliatory strikes against Gulf nations hosting US assets amid escalating regional tensions.

Fahmy said all parties are responsible for maintaining regional security and stability, stressing that the US administration is particularly required to bear its responsibilities in this regard.

He called on Trump to “rein in the extremist ambitions of the Israeli government” aimed at thwarting the peace initiative in Sharm El-Sheikh, in reference to the US president’s 20-point plan for Gaza in September 2025.

The plan includes a ceasefire, a prisoner exchange, a phased Israeli withdrawal, a transitional Palestinian administration, and the reconstruction of the Gaza Strip.

The Arab League chief also called on the US president to stop the repeated Israeli violations in East Jerusalem and put an end to the occupier attacks against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank.

He accused the Israeli government of seeking to “completely eliminate the Palestinian presence” by expanding illegal settlements and continuing its displacement plan.

Fahmy also called for “a swift return” to the understandings between the US and Iran and the resumption of negotiations aimed at ending the conflict, restoring stability to the region, respecting the sovereignty and interests of neighboring countries, and opening the waterways for safe passage in the Gulf and the Bab el-Mandeb Strait in the Red Sea.