Former Egyptian Foreign Minister Nabil Fahmy Appointed New Secretary-General of Arab League

Former Egyptian Foreign Minister Nabil Fahmy has been appointed as the new Secretary-General of the Arab League. Arab foreign ministers unanimously elected him as the Secretary-General of the Arab League on Sunday.

Fahmy will be officially endorsed by Arab leaders at the next summit to be held in Saudi Arabia in July.

Fahmy, a former diplomat who led Egypt's Ministry of Foreign Affairs from June 2013 to July 2014, will become the eighth head of the regional organization headquartered in Cairo, succeeding Ahmed Aboul Gheit.

He is currently the only Egyptian citizen to reach this high post in the organization. Previously, in the 1980s, Chédli Klibi, a Tunisian national from Egypt, was given the responsibility.

Egypt was suspended in 1979 due to signing a peace treaty with Israel.

Upon learning of the appointment, the 75-year-old Fahmy stated, 'The blatant violation of international law by the attackers who committed treacherous attacks on our country and our security, and the long occupation of our land, has prevented our brothers from exercising their legitimate rights.'

He did not explicitly name Iran or Israel, but his statement echoed the policy of his predecessor regarding both countries. Established in 1945, the Arab League is often a political forum for Arab countries to discuss and communicate points of agreement.