The State of Qatar took part in the International Conference on the Victims of Ethnic and Religious Violence in the Middle East held in Spain.
The State of Qatar was represented at the event by Qatar’s ambassador to the Kingdom of Spain, Mohamed Jaham al-Kuwari, on behalf of HE Minister of Foreign Affairs Sheikh Mohamed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani.
The Minister of Foreign Affairs and Co-operation of the Kingdom of Spain, Alfonso Dastis, and Foreign Minister of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, Ayman Safadi, presided over the Conference, which brought together 70 States and international organisations.
In his keynote addresses, the Qatari ambassador said the peoples of the Middle East, Arab and Islamic countries, are the most affected by the scourge of terrorism and all forms of violence resulting from civil wars and regional conflicts that force them to leave their lands and seek asylum, including Christians and other minorities.
The Palestinian people are the oldest victims in the region since 1948. They were forced to abandon their territory because of persecution and terrorism, al-Kuwari said.
He stressed the need to eradicate terrorism from its roots and not to regard refugees as a source of terrorism but as victims.
There were countries that practice terrorism under the pretext of fighting it, the Qatari diplomat said, reiterating the need to distinguish between terrorism and the exercise of the legitimate right of peoples for self-determination and freedom.

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