The final communique of the extraordinary Islamic Summit, which took place in the city of Istanbul, called on the international community not to recognise Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.
The statement condemned and denounced the illegal and unilateral move by the United States to recognise Jerusalem as the so-called capital of Israel, the occupying power.
The statement said that the member states consider the US decision as null and legally void as it is a clear attack on the historical, legal, national and natural rights of the Palestinian people.
They also considered the decision a clear undermining of the peace process and an impetus to extremism and terrorism. The member states also considered it a threat to international peace and security and called on prioritising the Palestinian cause in the foreign policy agenda.
The communique also reaffirmed the cause of Palestine and Jerusalem for the Muslim Ummah. It reaffirmed its principled support for the right of the Palestinian people to regain their inalienable national rights, including the right to self-determination and the establishment of an independent and sovereign state on the territory occupied since June 1967, with East Jerusalem as its capital.
The statement also reasserted the status of Jerusalem in the hearts and minds of Muslims.
The member states also stressed their commitment to standing against all measures that seek to change the historical, legal, religious, or political status of Jerusalem.
They also reiterated their commitment to comprehensive peace based on a two-state solution with East Jerusalem as a capital for Palestine, in accordance to the internationally recognised terms of reference and the 2002 Arab peace initiative adopted at the extraordinary summit in Makkah in 2005, calling on the international community to act effectively towards achieving that goal.
The communique then stressed the adherence of the OIC to all previous summit resolutions on Palestine, including comprehensive peace that can only be realised by ending the occupation and establishing a Palestinian state that has full sovereignty on the city of Jerusalem
The communique of the OIC extraordinary summit considered that the dangerous declaration, which aims to change the legal status of the city of Jerusalem, is null and void and lacks any legitimacy, and that it is a serious violation of the international law, and the Fourth Geneva Convention in particular, and all relevant resolutions of international legitimacy, particularly the UN Security Council resolutions No 478 (1980) and 2334 (2016), and the foundation of the peace process that stipulate that city of Jerusalem as a final status issue, the agreements signed and the undertakings made in this regard by the United States of America, which requires immediate reversal of these decisions.
The communique held the US administration fully liable for all the consequences of not retracting from this illegal decision, and regarded it as an announcement of the US administration’s withdrawal from its role as sponsor of peace and its realisation among all stakeholders and an encouragement of Israel, the occupying power, to continue its policy of colonialism, settlement, apartheid and the ethnic cleansing it has been practising in the occupied Palestinian territory since 1976.
The participants thanked the regional institutions for their positive stand in favour of the State of Palestine and the status of Jerusalem; and mandated the General Secretariat to mobilise support for the cause of Palestine.
The participants declared east Jerusalem as the capital of the State of Palestine and invited all countries to recognise it in the same manner.
The communique also condemned the unjustified bias of the US Congress in favour of the imperial and racist policies and practices of Israel.
It welcomed the international consensus rejecting the declaration of the US Administration, which violates all resolutions of international legitimacy, because of its serious repercussions on the security and stability in the region and the world. The communique also called upon all states to continue to fully implement UNSCR 478 of 1980, and in this regard urged all States to a refrain from supporting the US decision to recognise Jerusalem as the so-called capital of Israel and not to relocate their diplomatic missions to Jerusalem.
It also called on the UN Security Council to assume its responsibilities immediately and reaffirm the legal status of the city of Jerusalem.
The final communique of the OIC extraordinary summit affirmed the member states’ stand for the cause of Palestine and Jerusalem as the main issue in international forums, including member states’ voting in favour of the relevant resolutions of the Security Council, the General Assembly, the Human Rights Council, the Unesco and other international organisations, expressing their rejection of any action contrary to this principled position, and any member state taking a different stance shall be considered to have left Islamic unanimity and should therefore be held accountable.
It strongly urged all member states to support the executive arm of the Jerusalem committee chaired by King Mohamed VI of Morocco, in order to help the inhabitants of Jerusalem.
The communique also strongly urged all members, specialised agencies and non-governmental organisations in the member states to increase their contributions to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency of Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), so as to ease the ongoing financial crises, exacerbated by the current humanitarian situation on the ground, and to support the agency’s valuable work in assisting the Palestine refugees.
It called upon the member states and relevant OIC bodies to continue to provide all forms of economic, social, technical and material support and assistance to the Palestinian people and the state of Palestine, including promotion and facilitation of trade. It also called for developing capacity building programmes and to enhance financial and economic assistance to build up a strong and independent Palestinian national economy.
The communique called upon the OIC executive committee and its Bureau and the Ministerial Contact Group on Jerusalem to act expeditiously and communicate with the governments of various countries and international organizations to raise their awareness of the seriousness of this step.
It also requested IDB to support economic and social development endeavours in Jerusalem and other occupied territories though the “Islamic Solidarity Fund for Development” by prioritising Palestine projects and formulating special and flexible mechanisms and procedures for them.
His Highness the Emir of Qatar Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani at the OIC summit held in Istanbul yesterday.
