CAIRO: Former foreign minister of Egypt, Ahmed Aboul-Gheit has been named as the new secretary-general of the Arab League, the regional organization of Arab countries.
The decision to appoint Aboul-Gheit as the new chief came after the outgoing secretary-general Nabil Al-Araby declined a second 5-year term.
Aboul-Gheit is, now, the eighth secretary general of the League since it was founded in 1945.
The meeting took place in Cairo, at a time when the regional body faces multiple wars and a widening jihadist threat.
However, Qatar showed reservations over appointment of Aboul-Gheit due to his ‘hostile positions’ towards Doha.
According to Article 12 of the Arab League Pact, the secretary-general is to be appointed upon the vote of two-thirds of the member states, currently 21 after the suspension of Syria’s membership over its crisis.
Aboul-Gheit served as Egypt’s foreign minister from 2004 until 2011.