Arab League

Following adoption of the Alexandria Protocol in 1944, the Arab League was founded on 22 March 1945.[11] The official headquarters of the League was the Boustan Palace in Cairo.[12] It aimed to be a regional organisation of Arab states with a focus to developing the economy, resolving disputes and coordinating political aims.[11] Other countries later joined the league.[13] Each country was given one vote in the council. The first major action was the joint intervention, allegedly on behalf of the majority Arab population being uprooted as the state of Israel emerged in 1948 (and in response to popular protest in the Arab world), but a major participant in this intervention, Transjordan, had agreed with the Israelis to divide up the Arab Palestinian state proposed by the United Nations General Assembly, and Egypt intervened primarily to prevent its rival in Amman from accomplishing its objective.[14] It was followed by the creation of a mutual defence treaty two years later. A common market was established in 1965.[15]

The Arab League has achieved relatively low levels of cooperation throughout its history. According to Michael Barnett and Etel Solingen, the design of the Arab League reflects Arab leaders' individual concerns for regime survival: "the politics of Arab nationalism and a shared identity led Arab states to embrace the rhetoric of Arab unity in order to legitimize their regimes, and to fear Arab unity in practice because it would impose greater restrictions on their sovereignty."[7] The Arab League was "specifically designed to fail at producing the kind of greater collaboration and integration that might have weakened political leaders at home."[7]

Joining dates of member states; the Comoros (circled) joined in 1993.
  1940s   1950s   1960s   1970s

The Arab League member states cover over 13,000,000 km² (5,000,000 sq mi) and straddles two continents: Africa and Asia. The area largely consists of arid deserts, such as the Sahara. Nevertheless, it also contains several highly fertile lands like the Nile Valley, the Jubba Valley and Shebelle Valley in the Horn of Africa, the Atlas Mountains in the Maghreb, and the Fertile Crescent that stretches over Mesopotamia and the Levant. The area comprises deep forests in southern Arabia and parts of the world's longest river, the Nile.

The Charter of the Arab League, also known as the Pact of the League of Arab States, is the founding treaty of the Arab League. Adopted in 1945, it stipulates that "the League of Arab States shall be composed of the independent Arab States that have signed this Pact."[16]

Initially, in 1945, there were only six members. Today, the Arab League has 22 members, including three African countries among the largest by area (Sudan, Algeria and Libya) and the largest country in Western Asia (Saudi Arabia).

There was a continual increase in membership during the second half of the 20th century. As of 2020, there are 22 member states:

and 5 observer states (note: the below observer states have been invited to participate during select Arab League sessions, but do not hold voting privileges):

On 26 March 1979, Egypt was suspended from the Arab League due to the Egypt–Israel peace treaty; it was later readmitted on 23 May 1989.

Libya was suspended on 22 February 2011, following the start of the Libyan Civil War.[22] The National Transitional Council, the partially recognised interim government of Libya, sent a representative to be seated at the Arab League meeting on 17 August to participate in a discussion as to whether to readmit Libya to the organisation.[23]

Syria was suspended on 16 November 2011. On 6 March 2013, the Arab League gave the Syrian National Coalition Syria's seat in the Arab League.[24] On 9 March 2014, secretary general Nabil al-Arabi said that Syria's seat would remain vacant until the opposition completes the formation of its institutions.[25]

Headquarters of the Arab League, Cairo.

  Recognition of both Israel and Palestinian State

  Recognition of Palestinian State only

Administrative divisions in the Arab League.

The Arab League is a political organization which tries to help integrate its members economically, and solve conflicts involving member states without asking for foreign assistance. It possesses elements of a state representative parliament while foreign affairs are often conducted under UN supervision.

The Charter of the Arab League[6] endorsed the principle of an Arab homeland while respecting the sovereignty of the individual member states. The internal regulations of the Council of the League[26] and the committees[27] were agreed in October 1951. Those of the Secretariat-General were agreed in May 1953.[28]

Since then, governance of the Arab League has been based on the duality of supra-national institutions and the sovereignty of the member states. Preservation of individual statehood derived its strengths from the natural preference of ruling elites to maintain their power and independence in decision making. Moreover, the fear of the richer that the poorer may share their wealth in the name of Arab nationalism, the feuds among Arab rulers, and the influence of external powers that might oppose Arab unity can be seen as obstacles towards a deeper integration of the league.

Mindful of their previous announcements in support of the Arabs of Palestine the framers of the Pact were determined to include them within the League from its inauguration.[29] This was done by means of an annex that declared:[6]

Even though Palestine was not able to control her own destiny, it was on the basis of the recognition of her independence that the Covenant of the League of Nations determined a system of government for her. Her existence and her independence among the nations can, therefore, no more be questioned de jure than the independence of any of the other Arab States. [...] Therefore, the States signatory to the Pact of the Arab League consider that in view of Palestine's special circumstances, the Council of the League should designate an Arab delegate from Palestine to participate in its work until this country enjoys actual independence

At the Cairo Summit of 1964, the Arab League initiated the creation of an organisation representing the Palestinian people. The first Palestinian National Council convened in East Jerusalem on 29 May 1964. The Palestinian Liberation Organization was founded during this meeting on 2 June 1964. Palestine was shortly admitted in to the Arab League, represented by the PLO. Today, State of Palestine is a full member of the Arab League.

At the Beirut Summit on 28 March 2002, the league adopted the Arab Peace Initiative,[30] a Saudi-inspired peace plan for the Arab–Israeli conflict. The initiative offered full normalisation of the relations with Israel. In exchange, Israel was required to withdraw from all occupied territories, including the Golan Heights, to recognise Palestinian independence in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, with East Jerusalem as its capital, as well as a "just solution" for the Palestinian refugees. The Peace Initiative was again endorsed at 2007 in the Riyadh Summit. In July 2007, the Arab League sent a mission, consisting of the Jordanian and Egyptian foreign ministers, to Israel to promote the initiative. Following Venezuela's move to expel Israeli diplomats amid the 2008–2009 Israel–Gaza conflict, Kuwaiti member of parliament Waleed Al-Tabtabaie proposed moving Arab League headquarters to Caracas, Venezuela.[31] On 13 June 2010, Amr Mohammed Moussa, Secretary-General of the Arab League, visited the Gaza Strip, the first visit by an official of the Arab League since Hamas' armed takeover in 2007.

The Arab League is a member of the China-Arab States Cooperation Forum (CASCF), which was formed in 2004. CASCF is the Arab League's earliest participation in a cooperation forum with another country or region.[32] CASCF is the primarily multi-lateral coordination mechanism between the Arab states and China and within CASCF the Arab League represents its member states as a relatively unified force.[33] The Arab League's coordination allows Arab states to negotiate actively for collective projects involving multiple states, such as railway projects, nuclear power projects, and Dead Sea initiatives.[32]

In 2015, the Arab League voiced support for Saudi Arabian-led military intervention in Yemen against the Shia Houthis and forces loyal to former President Ali Abdullah Saleh, who was deposed in the 2011 uprising.[34]

On 15 April 2018, in response to the Turkish invasion of northern Syria aimed at ousting U.S.-backed Syrian Kurds from the enclave of Afrin, the Arab League passed a resolution calling on Turkish forces to withdraw from Afrin.[35]

In September 2019, the Arab League condemned Benjamin Netanyahu's plans to annex the eastern portion of the occupied West Bank known as the Jordan Valley.[36]

The Arab League met in Cairo on 12 October 2019 to discuss Turkish offensive into north-eastern Syria. Upon meeting, its member states voted to condemn the Turkish offensive, dubbing it both an 'invasion' and an 'aggression' against an Arab state, adding that the organization saw it as a violation of international law.[37]

On 9 September 2020, the Arab League refused to condemn the UAE's decision to normalize ties with Israel. Nevertheless, "The goal all our Arab countries seek, without exception, is to end the occupation and establish an independent Palestinian state on the 1967 borders with East Jerusalem as its capital," Abul Gheit said.[38]

The Joint Defence Council of the Arab League is one of the Institutions of the Arab League.[44] It was established under the terms of the Joint Defence and Economic Co-operation Treaty of 1950 to coordinate the joint defence of the Arab League member states.[45]

The Arab League as an organisation has no military Force, similar to the UN, but at the 2007 summit, the Leaders decided to reactivate their joint defence and establish a peacekeeping force to deploy in South Lebanon, Darfur, Iraq, and other hot spots.

At a 2015 summit in Egypt, member states agreed in principle to form a joint military force.[46]

Emergency summits

No.	Date	Host Country	Host City
1	21–27 September 1970	Egypt	Cairo
2	17–28 October 1976	Saudi Arabia	Riyadh
3	7–9 September 1985	Morocco	Casablanca
4	8–12 November 1987	Jordan	Amman
5	7–9 June 1988	Algeria	Algiers
6	23–26 June 1989	Morocco	Casablanca
7	28–30 March 1990	Iraq	Baghdad
8	9–10 August 1990	Egypt	Cairo
9	22–23 June 1996	Egypt	Cairo
10	21–22 October 2000	Egypt	Cairo
11	7 January 2016	Saudi Arabia	Riyadh

• Two summits are not added to the system of Arab League summits:
  • Anshas, Egypt: 28–29 May 1946.
  • Beirut, Lebanon: 13 – 15 November 1958.
• Summit 14 in Fes, Morocco, occurred in two stages:
  • On 25 November 1981: the 5-hour meeting ended without an agreement on document.
  • On 6–9 September 1982.

The Arab League is rich in resources, such as enormous oil and natural gas resources in certain member states. Another industry that is growing steadily in the Arab League is telecommunications. Within less than a decade, local companies such as Orascom and Etisalat have managed to compete internationally.

Economic achievements initiated by the League amongst member states have been less impressive than those achieved by smaller Arab organisations such as the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC).[47] Among them is the Arab Gas Pipeline, that will transport Egyptian and Iraqi gas to Jordan, Syria, Lebanon, and Turkey. As of 2013, a significant difference in economic conditions exist between the developed oil states of Algeria, Qatar, Kuwait and the UAE, and developing countries like the Comoros, Djibouti, Mauritania, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen.

OAPEC Members

The Arab League also includes great fertile lands in the southern part of Sudan. It is referred to as the food basket of the Arab World, the region's instability including the independence of South Sudan has not affected its tourism industry, that is considered the fastest growing industry in the region, with Egypt, UAE, Lebanon, Tunisia, and Jordan leading the way. Another industry that is growing steadily in the Arab League is telecommunications.

Economical achievements within members have been low in the league's history, other smaller Arab Organizations have achieved more than the league has, such as the GCC, but lately several major economic projects that are promising are to be completed, the Arab Gas Pipeline is to end by 2010, Connecting Egyptian and Iraqi Gas to Jordan, Syria and Lebanon, and then to Turkey thus Europe, a free trade Agreement (GAFTA) is to be completed by 1 January 2008, making 95% of all Arab Products tax free of customs.

In collecting literacy data, many countries estimate the number of literate people based on self-reported data. Some use educational attainment data as a proxy, but measures of school attendance or grade completion may differ. Because definitions and data collection methods vary across countries, literacy estimates should be used with caution. United Nations Development Programme, Human Development Report 2010. It is also important to note that the Persian Gulf region has had an oil boom, enabling more schools and universities to be set up.

Rank	Country	Literacy rate
1	Qatar	97.3[48]
2	Palestine	96.5[48]
3	Kuwait	96.3[48]
4	Bahrain	95.7[48]
5	Jordan	95.4[48]
6	Saudi Arabia	94.4[48]
7	Lebanon	93.9[48]
8	United Arab Emirates	93.8[48]
9	Oman	91.1[48]
10	Libya	91[48]
11	Syria	86.4[48]
12	Iraq	85.7[48]
13	Tunisia	81.8[48]
14	Comoros	81.8[48]
15	Algeria	80.2[48]
16	Sudan	75.9[48]
17	Egypt	73.8[48]
18	Yemen	70.1[48]
19	Djibouti	70.0[49]
20	Morocco	68.5[48]
21	Mauritania	52.1[48]
22	Somalia	44–72[50]

The Arab League is a culturally and ethnically one association of 22 member states, with the overwhelming majority of the League's population identified as Arab (on a cultural ethnoracial basis). As of 1 July 2013, about 359 million people live in the states of the Arab League. Its population grows faster than in most other global regions. The most populous member state is Egypt, with a population of about 100 million.[51] The least populated is the Comoros, with over 0.6 million inhabitants.

Rank	Country	Population	Density (/km2)	Density (sq mi)	Notes
1	Egypt	100,075,480	106	275	[52]
2	Algeria	40,400,000	16	41	[53]
3	Sudan	39,578,828	16	41	[54]
4	Iraq	37,202,572	83	215	[55]
5	Morocco	35,740,000	71	184	[53]
6	Saudi Arabia	33,000,000	12	31	[53]
7	Yemen	27,584,213	45	117	[53]
8	Syria*	21,906,000	118	306	[53]
9	Tunisia	11,304,482	65	168	[56]
10	Somalia	11,031,386	18	47	[53]
11	Jordan	10,159,967	71	184	[53]
12	United Arab Emirates	9,269,612	99	256	[57]
13	Libya	6,293,253	3.8	9.8	[53][58]
14	Lebanon	6,006,668	404	1,046	[53]
15	Palestine	4,550,368	756	1,958	[59]
16	Oman	4,424,762	9.2	24	[53]
17	Mauritania	4,301,018	3.2	8.3	[53]
18	Kuwait	4,052,584	200	518	[53]
19	Qatar	2,641,669	154	399	[53]
20	Bahrain	1,425,171	1,646	4,263	[60]
21	Djibouti	942,333	37	96	[53]
22	Comoros	795,601	309	800	[53]
Total	Arab League	412,972,397	30.4	78.7

• Syrian demographics are before the Syrian civil war.

Wikisource has original text related to this article:

Arab League Pact

Wikimedia Commons has media related to League of Arab States.

• (in Arabic) The League of Arab States (official site).
• (in English) League of Arab States Office in Washington D.C. – USA
• The League of Arab States at Al-Bab.com
• The Arab League at Council on Foreign Relations
• Profile: Arab League, BBC News, updated 9 August 2011
• Arab League Summit 2013 in Qatar (in English)
• Arab Turk Conference and Expo at Bursa
• Arab League collected news and commentary at The Jerusalem Post
• Arab League collected news and commentary at The New York Times