OIC proposes severing ties with countries that recognise Jerusalem as Israel's capital

The secretary general of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu, has indicated that the foreign ministers who represent the organisation’s member states will discuss a recommendation during their meeting in Conakry to sever diplomatic ties with countries that either recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s capital or transfer their embassies there.

According Ihsanoglu’s statement: “a special ministerial session on the status of Jerusalem will take place on the sidelines of a ministerial meeting in Conakry to discuss the legal and international aspects needed to curb the Israeli violations in the holy city.”

Ihsanoglu explained that: “the ministers will discuss another recommendation to coordinate the Islamic efforts in the UN Human Rights Council to thwart Israel’s attempt to delete the seventh item from the council’s agenda, which addresses the status of human rights in the Palestinian territories.”

The secretary-general also addressed several issues related to Egypt, Tunisia and Myanmar.

Ihsanoglu appealed to the Tunisian political forces “to favour Tunisia’s national interest over personal, factional and partisan interests by adopting the democratic process,” stressing that the Tunisian experience is a model of political maturity. Ihsanoglu expressed hope that the Tunisian parties will succeed in this experiment which interests not only the Tunisian people but also the Arab and Islamic worlds as well, warning that “if this experiment fails, it will have a negative impact on anyone who seeks to build a democratic government and a system of good governance.”

On the subject of Egypt, Ihsanoglu urged the political forces to implement the roadmap and to complete the constitutional requirements for a democratic rule that transfers power to an elected government.

With regard to the organisation’s efforts in Myanmar, the secretary-general noted that a delegation, which included himself and seven ministers from Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Turkey, Djibouti, Bangladesh, Indonesia and Malaysia, visited Myanmar from 13-16 November to meet with Myanmar’s political leadership and to observe the situation for Myanmar’s Muslim minority. Ihsanoglu pointed out that the organisation is working through its member states in the UN to obtain a resolution on the status of Myanmar’s Muslim minority that will be announced soon.

The secretary-general also said that “it is important to convene a special OIC session at the UN Security Council,” explaining that “the organisation has become an important lobbying force at the UN by supporting resolutions on crucial issues, and thus it is considered an important force in any reform process anticipated in the UN.”

Ihsanoglu explained that the organisation has proven in recent years its ability to address crucial issues in four continents, scoring several achievements, especially where the religious dimension emerged as a key element in these various issues, conflicts and tensions.