Saudi Arabia and other Muslim countries are calling for an end to Israel’s military operations in Gaza. They also reject the Zionist State’s justification for its actions against Palestinians as a form of self-defense.
The latest communiqué statement was released during the Extraordinary Summit of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) which was held in Riyadh on Saturday (11/11/2023). The joined countries urged the International Criminal Court (ICC) to investigate Israel’s “war crimes and crimes against humanity” in the Palestinian territories.
Saudi Arabia is trying to pressure the United States (US) and Israel to end hostilities in Gaza. Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS), the kingdom’s de facto ruler, reiterated the kingdom’s “firm condemnation and rejection of the barbaric war against our Palestinian brothers”.
“We are facing a humanitarian catastrophe that proves the failure of the Security Council and the international community to end Israel’s flagrant violations of international law,” he said in his speech at the summit, as quoted by Reuters .
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said Palestinians were facing a “war of genocide” and urged the United States to end Israel’s “aggression.”
On the same occasion, President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) said “The Indonesian Hospital in North Gaza continues to be the target of Israeli attacks and is running out of fuel.”
Jokowi said various ways must be found to get Israel to immediately implement a ceasefire. “The OIC must use all fronts to hold Israel accountable for the humanitarian atrocities it has committed,” he said.
Meanwhile Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi praised the Palestinian Islamic militant group Hamas for fighting against Israel and urged Islamic countries to impose oil and goods sanctions on Israel.
“There is no other way but to fight Israel. We kiss the hand of Hamas for its resistance to Israel,” Raisi said in his speech.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan called for an international peace conference to find a permanent solution to the conflict between Israel and Palestine.
“What we need in Gaza is not a pause for a few hours, but we need a permanent ceasefire,” Erdogan said at the summit.
Qatar’s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani said his country, where several Hamas leaders are based, was trying to mediate the release of the Israeli hostages and hoped a humanitarian ceasefire would be reached soon.
“How long will the international community treat Israel as if they are above international law?” he asked.
Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan told reporters that there would be no talks about Gaza’s future unless there were “talks about an immediate ceasefire”.
The summit also demanded an end to the siege of Gaza, access to humanitarian aid, and a halt to arms sales to Israel.
The Middle East has been in a precarious situation since Hamas fighters attacked Israel on October 7. Since then, Israel has stepped up its attacks on Gaza, where 11,078 people had been killed as of Friday, 40% of whom were children.
Source : CNBC