Riyaz Ul Khaliq
11 May 2021•Update: 11 May 2021
ANKARA
The permanent UN representatives of Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) member states have declared that they would mobilize international support for Palestinians facing Israeli attacks in occupied East Jerusalem.
In an urgent meeting in New York, OIC permanent representatives "unequivocally condemned the recent brutal use of force by the Israeli forces which injured over 300 Palestinians in Sheikh Jarrah and around Al-Aqsa mosque," the Pakistani mission at the UN said in a statement on Monday.
A core group of OIC members including Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan has taken the lead in seeking support to convene a special session of the UN General Assembly on the matter, the statement said.
The OIC permanent representatives agreed to discuss attacks on Muslim worshippers at the Al-Aqsa Mosque and other escalations in Jerusalem and Gaza at the meeting on Monday, it added.
Tensions have been running high in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood of East Jerusalem since last week when Israeli settlers swarmed in after an Israeli court ordered the eviction of Palestinian families.
Palestinians protesting in solidarity with the residents of Sheikh Jarrah have been targeted by Israeli forces.
Israel's recent attacks go "against all humanitarian norms and human rights laws," especially during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, the OIC ambassadors said in the meeting according to the statement.
"Alarms were particularly raised that residents of Sheikh Jarrah who lived in that neighborhood for decades were facing the threat of forced eviction," the envoys said, urging the international community to take prompt action to protect the Palestinian people.
Ambassador Munir Akram, Pakistan's Permanent Representative to the UN, underscored the need for "unequivocal and strong solidarity with all Palestinians."
"The group should draw the international community's attention to the Israeli violations of the historic and legal status quo at the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound and to stop these crimes against the Palestinian people and Muslim holy sites and to ensure the protection they need as per international law," he said.
Akram said reiterated Pakistan's "unwavering commitment" to a two-state solution in accordance with the relevant UN and OIC resolutions, with the pre-1967 borders and Al-Quds Al-Sharif as the capital of a viable, independent and contiguous Palestinian State.
Palestinians protesting in solidarity with the residents of Sheikh Jarrah have been targeted by Israeli forces.
Israel occupied East Jerusalem during the 1967 Arab-Israeli war and annexed the entire city in 1980 -- a move that has never been recognized by the international community.
