Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi on Sunday said the Arab leaders have agreed to create a joint military force to confront the challenges that the region faces, particularly from the Islamic State (ISIS). “The Arab leaders had decided to agree on the principle of a joint Arab military force,” the President said during the closing session of the Arab league’s 26th annual summit which was held in the Sharm el-Sheikh Red Sea resort.
“The Arab National security faces challenges that we have to confront,” el-Sisi said, in an apparent reference to the ISIS militants who have seized swathes of Iraq and Syria besides winning a foothold in libya. The President added that top Arab officials will discuss structure and mechanism of the joint force next month. According to Egyptian officials, the joint force would consist of around 40,000 elite troops backed by jets and warships. The joint force would be supervised by the chiefs of staffs of Arab armed forces, Sisi said. During the two-day summit, which mainly tackled the Arab national security and the Yemeni crisis, the Arab leaders said that the Saudi-led airstrikes in Yemen will continue until Houthi rebels withdraw and surrender.
The summit final communique called for “coordination, efforts and steps to establish an unified Arab force” to intervene in countries like Yemen. Arab league Secretary General Nabil el-Arabi said during the final session that there is an absolute need to confront all threats to the national security of Arab States. El-Arabi called for Arab unity “military, economic and societal” efforts in the face of these challenges. “What brings Arab States together is larger than what draws them apart,” said el-Arabi.