ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister for Human Rights Dr Shireen Mazari on Thursday urged Muslim countries to play their role in developing a consensus on the issue of Al-Quds.

Addressing an Al-Quds conference held to express solidarity with Palestine at a local hotel, she said Muslim countries, particularly Pakistan, Indonesia, Malaysia and Turkey, should play their role to revive the issue of Al-Quds and highlight the lost agenda at the international platform.

She said the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) had lost its relevance as it could not take up the issue of Al-Quds.

Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) has lost its relevance as it could not take up issue of Al-Quds, minister says

“OIC does not have the courage to highlight the issue of Al-Quds and take pragmatic measures to solve the issue of Palestine.”

She also raised her concern over the change of name of OIC and described it as dangerous for the Muslim Ummah and an invitation to non-Muslim countries to join the platform.

She said India, Israel and America had joined hands to exercise their hegemony in this region but they would never be successful.

The minister said this combination was a constant threat to the Kashmir issue. India is continuously violating human rights in Kashmir.

She said US President Donald Trump was destroying peace of the world by its aggressive policies and his threatening of Iran also showed his intention to ruin the peace of this region.

We have to continue our commitments not only to Palestine but also to the people of Kashmir.

She said the US administration under President Trump destroyed the UN consensus on the issue of Palestine. The US also unilaterally violated several resolutions of the UN on Palestine and opened its embassy in Jerusalem.

Jerusalem belongs to Palestine and this act of the US allowed Israel to have the right to annex all the settlements in Gaza and Golan Heights.

Similarly, she added, India has been trying to annex Kashmir by abrogating Article 35-A in its constitution, and trying to bring demographic changes in Kashmir.

Dr Mazari said OIC had not been effectively supporting the freedom movements in Kashmir and Palestine. She said the US was in the state of misconception due to its military might and wanted a unilateral approach towards Iran.

“We will not recognise Israel because if we recognised Israel we will undermine the Kashmir issue. We have to redeem and rediscover the Quaid’s commitments to the issues of Kashmir and Palestine.”

Allama Nasir Abbas, Senator Farhatullah Babar, Senator Pir Sabir Shah, Mazhar Barlas and others also spoke.

Published in Dawn, May 31st, 2019