The Arab League will hold an urgent meeting on 10 March to choose a new Secretary General to succeed Nabil Al-Araby, who decided to forego a second term in office.
Arab League Deputy Secretary General Ahmed Bin Heli told journalists Monday that Al-Araby received an official memo from Egypt calling for an urgent meeting for Arab foreign ministers on 10 March “to appoint a new secretary general since the Arab summit was postponed to July”.
According to the internal regulations, the Arab League decided to hold the urgent meeting. Egyptian foreign ministry spokesperson Ahmed Abu Zeid said in a statement that the Egyptian nominee is widely supported by Arab countries.
The nomination letter sent by Egyptian president Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi to Arab leaders included the request to hold the urgent meeting. Several local media sources have reported that former Egyptian foreign minister Ahmed Aboul Gheit is set to be a nominee for secretary general of the Arab League.
Egypt’s nominee for the secretary general will not be a surprise following substantial name-dropping by media agencies, sources at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs told Daily News Egypt.
Arab League Secretary General Nabil Al-Araby, whose current term ends on 1 July, said Sunday that he will not run for another term in office, as reported by Egyptian state news agency MENA. Al-Araby was appointed Arab League secretary general in March 2011.
Egyptian Minister of Foreign Affairs Sameh Shoukry expressed his deep respect for Al-Araby’s efforts to bring together Arab countries in a united stance and to protect the interests of Arab states during his time in office. Shoukry also praised Al-Araby’s diplomatic career that began with his work at the Egyptian foreign ministry and continued during his capacity as a legal advisor to the Egyptian delegation at the UN peace conference in Geneva in 1973.
The secretary generals of the Arab League have always been Egyptian, except in 1979 when the Arab League headquarters were moved to Tunisia follwing the signing of the Camp David treaty. Chedli Klibi was selected for the position at that time.
