Chairman of the Saudi Shura Council is calling for Israel’s nuclear facilities to be monitored by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

Abdullah bin Mohammed bin Ibrahim Al Sheikh made the call on Monday on the sidelines of the fifth Conference of the Asian Parliamentary Assembly held in the Syrian capital, Damascus.

"Israel is the only wielder of nuclear weapons in the Middle East that is preventing IAEA inspectors from examining its nuclear facilities," IRNA quoted Abdullah Al Sheikh as saying.

The Saudi official further described the issue of Palestine as one of the top priorities on the agenda of the ongoing Damascus conference.

The fifth Conference of the Asian Parliamentary Assembly was inaugurated on Monday morning in the Umayyad Congress Palace in Damascus.

Representatives from 41 Asian states and observers from 17 international organizations are expected to take part in the event.

Scheduled to last until December 1, the assembly is to focus namely on the role of Asian parliaments in enhancing anti-terrorism and combating occupation policy.

Combating corruption, achieving health equity, promoting the principles of friendship and cooperation in the continent, the effects of the global financial crisis on the economies of member-states and climate change are among other issues to be addressed in the meeting.

(Press TV)