ISTANBUL: Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi has reiterated Pakistan’s support to Palestinian people in the face of tyranny and said member states of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) should enlist other countries’ support to put an end to killings of Palestinians and help establish an independent and contiguous state of Palestine on the basis of internationally agreed parameters and with Al Quds as its capital.

In a statement at the seventh extraordinary summit of the OIC on Friday night, which was held to discuss the recent killings of over 100 Palestinians in Gaza, Mr Abbasi said: “It is no longer a question of choice but of necessity — to rise above our differences, demonstrate solidarity and support for the people of Palestine and above all ensure that international law is upheld without exception.”

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He said the OIC member countries should demand that the UN Security Council fulfil its responsibility of ensuring implementation of its existing resolutions. They should make it clear that the council’s credibility would be questioned if it did not deliver on its duties.

The prime minister said if the council was unable or unwilling to act, the Muslim countries should mobilise support in the UN General Assembly for rejection of revisionist decisions and ensuring accountability of violators of international law.

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“We must also set aside our political differences. Even more important is to faithfully implement the OIC plans of action that are already in place in diverse areas,” he said. Only by taking these steps could the Muslim countries take their destinies in their own hands.

He also suggested that member countries should seek opinion of the International Court of Justice about the atrocities Israel perpetrated along the Gaza border.

The prime minister said the recent killings represented yet another brazen chapter in the 70 years of injustice to the people of Palestine.

He also raised the issue of India-held Kashmir, and said the people residing there have also been facing tyranny and oppression for the last 70 years.

“For seven decades, the people of Jammu and Kashmir have been subjected to illegal Indian occupation and blatant violation of fundamental rights, including their right to self-determination,” said the prime minister.

“As in the case of Palestine, the UN Security Council resolutions continue to be defied and the just struggle for freedom conveniently branded as terrorism.”

OIC statement

The summit condemned the criminal actions of Israeli forces against the Palestinian people in the occupied territory, particularly in the Gaza Strip, where unarmed Palestinian civilians were exercising their right to peaceful protest against the illegal Israeli occupation.

The communiqué issued at the conclusion of the OIC summit held Israel as fully accountable for the grave atrocities in the occupied Palestinian territory, particularly for the willful killing of 60 civilians on May 14.

It called for protection of the Palestinian population, including through the dispatch of an international protection force.

The communiqué requested the OIC General Secretariat to immediately establish an independent committee of international experts to investigate the crimes and massacres committed by the Israeli forces in the Gaza Strip.

It also called for determining the culpability of the Israeli officials and communicating the findings to relevant international bodies.

Published in Dawn, May 20th, 2018