ISTANBUL

Prominent Muslim scholars on Saturday underscored that there is an urgent obligation to provide aid to Palestinians in Gaza, as the second day of an international conference continued on Democracy and Freedom Island in Istanbul.

The gathering, titled “Islamic and Humanitarian Responsibility: Gaza,” has been organized by the International Union of Muslim Scholars (IUMS) and the Foundation for Islamic Scholars in Türkiye. It has brought together more than 150 scholars from over 50 countries to discuss Israel’s war on Gaza and the wider Islamic world’s response.

The day began with a protocol session featuring speeches from senior figures, including IUMS President Sheikh Ali Muhyiddin al-Qaradaghi, Ali Erbas, head of Türkiye’s Presidency of Religious Affairs (Diyanet), and IUMS Secretary-General Sheikh Ali Muhammad al-Sallabi.

Sheikh Abdul Wahab Aykinci, the president of Ummat Association, opened the session on behalf of the organizing committee, while guest speeches were delivered by Iraqi and Turkish scholars, including Sheikh Ahmed Hassan Al-Taha of the Iraqi Fiqh Council and Prof. Nasrullah Hacimuftuoglu, president of the Foundation for Islamic Scholars in Türkiye.

The first workshop centered on “the obligation of aid to Gaza,” where delegation heads presented recommendations.

Later in the day, the program was supposed to feature a press briefing on the latest developments in Gaza and conclude with a public statement and protest in solidarity with Palestinians, but were delayed due to changes in the program's schedule.

The conference will continue on Sunday with a series of workshops dividing participants into groups of scholars, state representatives, business leaders, media professionals, and political figures.

Sessions will focus on themes such as the duties of Islamic scholars and governments, the role of business in reconstruction and aid projects, the responsibilities of media, and ways to strengthen unity in the Muslim world.

The day will conclude with the preparation of workshop reports and a general session evaluating the outcomes.

The eight-day event, which began on Friday with prayers at Istanbul’s Eyup Sultan Mosque, will continue through Aug. 29.

It is scheduled to close at the Hagia Sophia Grand Mosque with the issuance of the “Istanbul Declaration,” a document that organizers say will outline “concrete steps for political, humanitarian and legal action” in support of the Palestinian cause.

'We are grateful for those who are not silent'

Speaking to Anadolu on the sidelines of the conference, Abdul Vakhed Niyazov, president of the European Muslim Forum, praised Türkiye’s leadership in hosting the gathering.

Niyazov said many Muslim organizations have remained silent on Gaza, but emphasized that Türkiye’s Diyanet and the International Union of Muslim Scholars had “not been silent, but gathered their colleagues, Muslim spiritual leaders, and [were] trying to reach out to the minds of society, talking about the horrors our brothers and sisters in Gaza are experiencing today.”

Europe’s Muslims 'have shown responsibility'

Asked about the role of Muslims in Europe, Niyazov said diaspora communities had been more active than many Muslim-majority governments.

“We are proud that the Muslims of Europe have shown their responsibility and organization over the past 23 months. Unlike most of the Muslim world, especially Arab countries, the Muslims of Europe every weekend fill the largest squares and streets of Europe, raising their voices in defense of Gaza and Palestine,” he said.

He added that Muslim communities in Europe, America, and Canada had demonstrated “maturity” and were joined by people of other faiths, including Christians and Jews, in condemning genocide and “Zionist cruelty and crimes.”

“Only our organization, the year before last, held such actions in 17 European countries, mass actions in support of Palestine, Gaza and Muslim shrines,” Niyazov said, crediting the “enthusiasm and impulse of believers” across Europe for sustaining these demonstrations.

'European institutions remain silent'

Turning to the European Muslim Forum’s initiatives, Niyazov pointed to growing public support for Palestine across Europe, though he accused political institutions of lagging behind.

“The majority of Europeans today do not accept the bloody genocide and crimes of the Zionists and stand against it. We see how the position of the UK, France, the Netherlands is changing. It even starts to change in Germany,” he said.

However, he criticized EU leadership for inaction.

“As for the European institutions, unfortunately, they have taken a position of silence and indifference. They can no longer deny the genocide in Gaza, but they are trying to remain silent. The leadership of the EU led by Mrs. von der Leyen, has a particularly drinking position,” Niyazov said, adding that history would judge such leaders as “accomplices of bloody crimes.”

Niyazov also highlighted support from church institutions, including the Vatican, and pointed to late Pope Francis’s statements on Palestine.

“A believer cannot but notice the murder of women and children by hundreds of thousands every week,” he said, stressing that grassroots mobilization remains the strongest force for change.

“Yes, there are corrupt governments, leaders who are afraid of something, the scary forces of the US or the Israeli lobby,” he said.

“But when people go out on the street, on the square, they achieve, step by step, to change the situation.”