Arab League

I

Introduction

Arab League, formal name of the League of Arab States, a voluntary association of independent countries whose peoples are mainly Arabic speaking. Its stated purposes are to strengthen ties among the member states, coordinate their policies, and promote their common interests.

II

Membership

The league was founded in Cairo in 1945 by Egypt, Iraq, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Transjordan (Jordan, as of 1950), and Yemen. Countries that joined later are: Algeria (1962), Bahrain (1971), Comoros (1993), Djibouti (1977), Kuwait (1961), Libya (1953), Mauritania (1973), Morocco (1958), Oman (1971), Qatar (1971), Somalia (1974), Southern Yemen (1968), Sudan (1956), Tunisia (1958), and the United Arab Emirates (1971). The Palestine Liberation Organization was admitted in 1976, although Palestine had enjoyed de facto recognition by the Arab League since 1945. Egypt's membership was suspended in 1979 after it signed a peace treaty with Israel; the league's headquarters was moved from Cairo, Egypt, to Tunis, Tunisia. In 1987 Arab leaders decided to renew diplomatic ties with Egypt. Egypt was readmitted to the league in 1989 and the league's headquarters was moved back to Cairo.

III

Structure

The supreme organ of the Arab League is its council, made up of all the member states; each state has one vote. Unanimous council decisions are binding on all members. Majority decisions are binding only on those members who accepted them. The council convenes twice annually, in March and September. It convenes in special session upon the request of two member states whenever the need arises. The league appoints, by two-thirds majority, a secretary-general, who is in charge of the administration and financial offices, called the secretariat general, which is, in turn divided into 14 departments concerned with political, economic, social, and legal affairs. In 2001 Amr Musa was appointed secretary-general, replacing Ahmed Esmat Abdul Maguid, who had held the post since 1991. Other specialized agencies connected with the league include the Arab League Educational, Cultural, and Scientific Organization; and the Arab League Labour Organization.

IV

History

The Egyptian government first proposed the Arab League in 1943. Egypt and some of the other Arab states wanted closer cooperation without the loss of self-rule that would result from total union. The original charter of the league created a regional organization of sovereign states which was neither a union nor a federation. Among the goals the league set for itself were winning independence for all Arabs still under alien rule, and to prevent the Jewish minority in Palestine (then mandated by the British) from creating a Jewish state. The members eventually formed a joint defence council, an economic council, and a permanent military command.