As Dubai prepares for COP28, some world leaders signal they won't attend climate talks

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Dubai prepared Tuesday to host

the COP28 climate talks

as world leaders including U.S. President Joe Biden and Pope Francis signaled they would not be attending the negotiations that come during the ongoing Israel-Hamas war roiling the wider Middle East.

Workers under a still-scorching November sun stapled up bunting and

decorated Dubai Expo City's iconic Al Wasl Dome

with trees and other green foliage ahead of the summit, scheduled to start Thursday in the United Arab Emirates.

Armed United Nations police patrolled about half the area of Expo City where the delegates will debate, while the other half will host other climate events. Airport-style security screenings greeted those coming into both areas.

The two-week meeting of international leaders aims to assess where the world stands when it comes to

limiting emissions to slow global warming

to 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 degrees Fahrenheit) compared with pre-industrial times. Emirati officials said Tuesday they expect over 70,000 attendees at the talks, including heads of state.

Britain's King Charles will be among the leaders to attend the talks. However, some have said or otherwise signaled they won't be attending the Conference of the Parties — where COP gets its name.

They include the 81-year-old Biden, who attended both COP26 in Scotland and COP27 in Egypt.

“The president has been very much focused on the conflict between Israel and Hamas over the last month or so,” said John Kirby, a spokesman for the White House's National Security Council, on Monday. “He was working the phones over the course of Thanksgiving weekend. And I suspect that he’ll continue to work the phones in coming days.”

The White House has said it is sending a climate team

, including Special Envoy John Kerry, climate adviser Ali Zaidi and clean energy adviser John Podesta.

Pope Francis meanwhile canceled his trip to Dubai for the

U.N. climate conference

on doctors’ orders Tuesday, although he is

recovering from the flu

and lung inflammation, the Vatican said.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also likely will not attend the talks

, Israel's Foreign Ministry told The Associated Press on Tuesday night. Nor will Foreign Minister Eli Cohen attend the summit, the ministry said, citing the war.

Arab nations have reacted with rage over the punishing bombardment and ground offensive in the Gaza Strip after Hamas' Oct. 7 attack on Israel. The UAE reached a

diplomatic recognition deal

with Israel in 2020, but public anger still seethes in this autocratic nation of seven sheikhdoms.

Meanwhile, Syrian President Bashar Assad won't be attending either, according to the pro-government newspaper Al-Watan, despite receiving an invitation from Emirati leader Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan. Instead, Syrian Prime Minister Hussein Arnous will lead the country's delegation.

Assad has slowly reintegrated himself into Arab regional politics

in the last year, despite his brutal crackdown on 2011 Arab Spring protesters that descended into a civil war and consequently became a regional conflict. The war has killed half a million people and displaced half of Syria’s population.

___

Associated Press writer Bassem Mroue in Beirut contributed to this report.

___

Associated Press climate and environmental coverage receives support from several private foundations. See more about AP’s climate initiative

here

. The AP is solely responsible for all content.