AMMAN: Kuwait's Mercy International-part of The Social Reform Society (SRS), financed 35 catheterization operations and distributed 580 food basket to Syrian refugees in Jordan, said an official on Sunday. The head of the association's delegation Abdullah Al-Ajmi said to Kuwait News Agency that 35 operations were done in Amman out of 95, depending on emergency cases.

He added that the group of operations which were carried out over two days is the seventh among the catheterization operations in Jordan for Syrian refugees, pointing out that the beneficiaries have reached about 280 people. He noted that Mercy International continues to provide aid to the needy people to alleviate their suffering - including Syrian refugees in Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey.

He pointed out that the association works in accordance with the Ministries of Foreign Affairs and Social Affairs regulations - praising Jordan's role in facilitating the process. For his part, the Syrian Mohammad Hussein, whose was undergoing catheterization operation, praised Kuwait's leadership and people for their support.

Arabs' privacy, culture

In another development, the Arab Parliament has called on the US embassies in the Arab countries to respect the Arab societies' privacy, culture and religious constants like the Arabs do towards other societies. This came in a statement by the Arab Parliament on the backdrop of some US embassies' pro-gay rights post circulated on the social media accounts.

This act is unacceptable and runs counter to the norms and rules approved in the diplomatic relations amongst countries that based on respecting religious and societal values of the countries, the statement said. It stressed that respecting the culture and privacy of societal values in Arab countries does not contradict the principle of freedom of expression, which should not be used as a pretext to infringe the culture and privacy of societies.

The respect of this privacy is a basic human right that should be adhered to at all times and everywhere, it pointed out. Meanwhile, Kuwait's Foreign Ministry on Thursday, summoned Acting Charge d'Affaire of the US Embassy James Holtsnider on the backdrop of the embassy's pro-gay post on its social media accounts. The Ministry stressed the necessity for the embassy to respect the country's laws and regulations as stipulated in the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations of 1961.

Global peace, security

Mediation efforts are crucial towards boosting peace and security around the world, a Saudi diplomat said on Sunday, emphasizing that such efforts are all the more imperative given the global status quo. The international community should work as a cohesive unit to push forward mediation efforts in dealing with some of the most "complicated matters," Saudi Deputy Foreign Minister Waleed AlKhraiji told a pan-Islamic gathering to discuss mediation.

The Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) is a major proponent of mediation efforts, thanks largely to the fact that some 60 percent of conflicts around the world lie within the bloc's geographic area. Given the spread of conflicts around the world, the use of mediation as a tool to resolve such disputes is the only way to ensure a peaceful resolution to the unrest, according to Turkey's Permanent Representative to the OIC Mehmet Eker. Echoing the Turkish envoy's sentiments, Pakistan's Permanent representative to the bloc, Saeed Sheikh, agreed that the use of mediation is the only surefire way to keep conflicts at bay. - KUNA