AL chief says will not seek new term

AL chief says will not seek new term

February 29, 2016
Nabil Al-Araby
Nabil Al-Araby

CAIRO — Arab League Secretary General Nabil Al-Araby said on Sunday that he will not seek another term after his current one ends on July 1, Egyptian state news agency MENA reported.

The former Egyptian foreign minister was appointed secretary general of the 22-member organization of Arab states in May 2011, succeeding Amr Moussa. He officially took office on July 1, 2011.

Previously, he was Foreign Minister of Egypt in Essam Sharaf’s government from March to June 2011.

The Arab League is a regional organization of Arab countries in and around North Africa, the Horn of Africa and Arabia. It was formed in Cairo on March 22, 1945 with six members: Kingdom of Egypt, Kingdom of Iraq, Transjordan (renamed Jordan in 1949), Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, and Syria.

Yemen joined as a member on May 5,1945. Currently, the League has 22 members, although Syria’s participation has been suspended since November 2011, as a consequence of government repression during the ongoing uprising and civil war.

The League’s main goal is to “draw closer the relations between member States and co-ordinate collaboration between them, to safeguard their independence and sovereignty, and to consider in a general way the affairs and interests of the Arab countries.”

Through institutions such as the Arab League Educational, Cultural and Scientific Organization (ALECSO) and the Economic and Social Council of the Arab League’s Council of Arab Economic Unity (CAEU), the Arab League facilitates political, economic, cultural, scientific, and social programs designed to promote the interests of the Arab world.


February 29, 2016
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