GRNLive Foreign Correspondents Network

The Afro-Arab summit in Sirte, only the second summit of the two blocs in 30-plus years,  aims to forge common policies and strategies for mutual benefit and as a means of gaining more clout on the world stage. The vehicle is the proposed Strategic Plan of the Afro-Arab Cooperation 2011-2015. A preparatory meeting and recent events suggest the African Union could also seek help from the Arabs in reining-in Islamic extremists, while Arab League countries could press for additional AU support in their long-standing issues with Israel. African and Arab leaders met first as blocs in 1977 -- as the Arab League and the Organization of African Unity, the forerunner of the African Union.

The Strategic Plan will be the main business of the summit, but the two sides can be counted on to bring their individual preoccupations to the meeting. The AU preoccupation with Islamic extremism intensified  after a bloody attack that killed 76 people in Kampala during the World Cup. The Somali Islamist insurgent group al-Shabab claimed responsibility for the twin bombings. The AU has already pledged support for a main issue for the Arabs, which is Israel. The AU summit in July "brought together about 30 heads of state who all agreed to jointly help end the conflict between the Arab people and Israel," according to a post-summit statement. For more details, click here.

GRN correspondent Saleh Sarrar will be in Libyan city of Syrt.