Turkish parties issue joint declaration on Jerusalem

By Muhammet Emin Avundukluoglu

ANKARA

Turkey's ruling Justice and Development (AK) Party and opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) and Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) on Wednesday called on the international community to recognize Jerusalem as Palestine's capital.

"We call on the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) and all other countries to recognize East Jerusalem as the capital of an independent Palestine which is still under occupation, and the borders of which were defined in 1967," said the political parties in a joint declaration.

The declaration said that the U.S. president's move would cause instability in the Middle East.

"Taking this decision in this period, in which we are coming to end of the ongoing war in Syria, is irresponsible," said the declaration.

The declaration also called for a permanent peace between Palestine and Israel.

The parties recalled that the parliament had issued a joint declaration on Dec. 6 against the U.S. move recognizing Jerusalem as the Israeli capital.

The AK Party, CHP and MHP jointly occupy overwhelming majority of seats in the Turkish parliament.

Last week, U.S. President Donald Trump announced his decision -- despite widespread opposition -- to formally recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s capital and relocate Washington's embassy from Tel Aviv to the holy city.

The announcement sparked strong condemnation from around the world, including Turkey, the EU and the UN.

The declaration comes following a 57-member OIC meeting which Turkey hosted on Wednesday to develop a unified Muslim position on Trump’s policy shift.

It is the second-largest inter-governmental body after the United Nations, and its member states spread over four continents.

It was established during a historic summit in Rabat, Morocco in 1969 following an arson attack on the Al-Aqsa Mosque in occupied Jerusalem.

Jerusalem remains at the core of the Israel-Palestine conflict, with Palestinians hoping that East Jerusalem -- now occupied by Israel -- might eventually serve as the capital of a future Palestinian state.