Lebanese caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati (left) meets with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in New York, on Sept. 20, 2023. (Credit: Dalati and Nohra)
BEIRUT — Lebanese caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati, who is in New York for the United Nations General Assembly, held a series of meetings with regional leaders on Wednesday, according to his press office.
These included a three-way meeting with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.
Mikati then met privately with Abbas, where the two men discussed the recent clashes in the Palestinian refugee camp of Ain al-Hilweh, in southern Lebanon.
The fighting pitted fighters from the Fatah movement against Islamist groups for ten days.
Abbas said he had "given his instructions" to put an end to the fighting, which claimed at least 18 lives, according to the statement from Mikati's press office.
For his part, Mikati stressed the importance of cooperation with Lebanese security services to reduce tensions in the camp. "What happened does not help the Palestinian cause at all," said the caretaker prime minister, according to the statement.
Mikati also met Iraqi Prime Minister Mahmoud Shia al-Soudani, whom he invited to visit Lebanon.
At the end of July, Lebanon and Iraq signed a renewed memorandum of understanding concerning the supply of fuel from Baghdad to Lebanon.
Under this agreement, Iraq will supply Lebanon with 2 million tons of fuel oil. The Iraqi fuel supply is intended to enable Lebanon to power the Deir Ammar and Zahrani power plants, at a time when the country is going through a severe economic crisis and public electricity supplier, Électricité du Liban, only provides a few hours of power a day.