Why Was Iraq Left Out of the Riyadh Summit Despite Its Support for Gaza?

The mini-Arab summit held in Riyadh on February 21, 2025, sparked controversy in Iraq over its exclusion, especially given its focus on Gaza—an issue of key regional interest to Baghdad.

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman invited leaders from Egypt, Jordan, and all GCC states, with only Oman absent for undisclosed reasons, according to a Saudi source cited by AFP.

‘Brotherly Unofficial Meeting’

Saudi Arabia hosted a mini Arab summit in Riyadh on February 21, 2025, described as a “friendly and brotherly meeting,” where leaders discussed a response to a reported proposal by former U.S. President Donald Trump to “relocate” Palestinians from Gaza to Egypt and Jordan.

No official statement was released after the meeting. A source close to the Saudi government told AFP that the summit convened and concluded on the afternoon of Friday, February 21, 2025, noting that Oman was absent.

Arab leaders discussed a “reconstruction plan” as an alternative to Trump’s proposal for Gaza. Egypt has yet to announce official details, but a former Egyptian diplomat described a three-phase plan spanning three to five years.

“This meeting is part of the private friendly gatherings that have been regularly held for many years between the leaders of the GCC states, Jordan, and Egypt,” SPA said. 

Decisions regarding joint Arab action would be addressed during an upcoming emergency Arab summit in Egypt on March 4.

The head of the Egyptian regime Abdel Fattah el-Sissi left Riyadh after attending an “informal meeting on the Palestinian issue,” Egypt’s presidency confirmed.

Saudi state-run Alekhbariya TV published a photo of the summit attendees but did not disclose the meeting’s location or agenda. The image showed Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman alongside UAE President Mohammed bin Zayed, his brother and national security advisor Tahnoun bin Zayed, Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani, Kuwaiti Emir Sheikh Mishal al-Ahmad al-Jaber al-Sabah, Jordan’s King Abdullah II and Crown Prince Hussein, head of the Egyptian regime Abdel Fattah el-Sissi, and Bahraini Prime Minister Salman bin Hamad al-Khalifa.

Ahead of the summit, reports suggested potential disagreements over Gaza’s governance and the funding of its reconstruction following the Israeli Occupation’s war on The Strip. However, the meeting was seen as a rare moment of Arab consensus, united in rejecting the displacement of Palestinians amid Trump's proposals that could reshape the Middle East's geopolitical landscape.

محمد شياع السوداني يتصل بوزارة الخارجية السعودية ويطلب دعوته للقاء غدا ولكن الطلب رفض والحكومة العراقية والعراق الحالي يمثلان ادارة ثانوية تابعة لايران ولا تستطيع اي دولة التعامل معهم

— عمر عبد الستار محمود (@omarabdulsatar) February 20, 2025

Contingent Decision

Iraq’s exclusion from the mini-Arab summit in Riyadh has stirred political debate, as the country had previously been invited to similar meetings, including one in Aqaba, Jordan, attended by former Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi in March 2022.

Iraqi politician Omar Abdulsatar, known for his ties to Riyadh, claimed on X that Prime Minister Mohammed Shia’ al-Sudani had contacted the Saudi Foreign Ministry requesting an invitation to the February 21 summit but was denied.

The rejection was based on Saudi Arabia's belief that “the current Iraqi government and Iraq as a whole operate as a secondary entity under Iran's influence, making engagement with them untenable for any nation.”

Neither the Iraqi nor the Saudi government has issued an official statement addressing the controversy over Iraq’s exclusion from the mini-Arab summit in Riyadh.

“Isolating Iraq from key Arab meetings that discuss vital issues sends a wrong message, and Iraqi politicians, along with some Arab state leaders, are responsible for this,” Kamil al-Dulaimi, chief of staff at Iraq’s presidency, posted on X.

Former Iraqi MP Raheem al-Darraji addressed Iraqi politicians on X, saying: “This is the price for losing national and political decision-making, the price for losing loyalty to Iraq and Iraqis. This is a price you pay rightfully, as you represent an era of corruption and failure, as our supreme reference in Najaf has stated.”

‘Common Cause’

Iraqi political analyst Latif al-Mahdawi argued that the speculation about Iraq’s exclusion from the Riyadh summit, including claims of its dependency on Iran, is not new; post-2003 Iraqi governments have always been seen as influenced by Tehran.

“The true reason for Iraq’s exclusion likely lies in the summit’s agenda, which centers on shared concerns among the invited nations,” he told Al-Estiklal.

“Gulf countries, along with Jordan and Egypt, have either normalized relations with Israel or are involved in ceasefire negotiations regarding Gaza, leaving Iraq out of the loop on this matter.”

Al-Mahdawi also highlighted that not only Iraq, but also all of the Maghreb countries, were not invited, including Algeria, which opposes the Israeli Occupation. 

“Morocco, having normalized relations with Israel, was also excluded,” he added.

Political analyst Haitham al-Khazali said Iraq’s absence was because it is not involved in the discussions regarding the relocation of Palestinians from Gaza, a proposal Iraq has publicly opposed.

Al-Khazali emphasized that Iraq has firmly rejected any plan to relocate Palestinians from Gaza and therefore had no role in the Riyadh summit, which was focused on issues concerning Jordan, Egypt, and Saudi Arabia, as outlined by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, al-Maalomah news agency reported.

In related news, Egypt announced on February 19 that the emergency Arab summit on Gaza would be postponed until March 4, 2025, to allow for additional preparations. The summit is expected to discuss a post-war reconstruction plan for Gaza, likely serving as an alternative to U.S. President Donald Trump’s proposal for Palestinian “relocation,” which has been widely rejected and condemned both regionally and internationally.