OIC Foreign Ministers Discuss in Jeddah the Ongoing Israeli Aggression Against the Palestinian People

The extraordinary meeting of the Council of Foreign Ministers of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) convened on the evening of Friday, March 7, 2025, in Jeddah to discuss the ongoing Israeli aggression against the Palestinian people and the plans for annexation and forced displacement from their land.
 In a press release issued by the OIC, the meeting commenced with a speech by Minister of External Relations of the Republic of Cameroon Lejeune Mbella Mbella, whose country currently holds the presidency of the Council of Foreign Ministers.
 Mbella stated that the meeting is being held amid new developments in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, including calls for the displacement of Palestinians. He emphasized that this situation requires a moment of assessment and forward-looking vision, while maintaining the unified stance of our organization on this critical issue, in accordance with its charter and relevant United Nations resolutions.
 He emphasized the importance of the ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas, which was reached last January, noting that the agreement contributes to improving the humanitarian situation in Gaza and helps ease escalating tensions in the Middle East.
 The Cameroonian Foreign Minister urged the full implementation of the agreement to reach a final resolution to the conflict within a coordinated and multilateral approach. He emphasized that this approach can only be viable and relevant within the framework of the two-state solution, where Israel and Palestine coexist side by side within internationally recognized borders, ensuring comprehensive peace in the Middle East.
 The release added that he called on member states to once again express their steadfast solidarity with the Palestinian people by providing them with the necessary humanitarian assistance and continuing efforts to achieve a peaceful resolution to this long-standing conflict, in accordance with relevant United Nations resolutions and regional peace initiatives.
 For his part, Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation of the Republic of The Gambia Dr. Mamadou Tangara stated that his country, as the current chair of the Islamic Summit, renews its call for the international community to continue fulfilling its responsibilities in stopping the ongoing Israeli aggression against the Palestinian people, which has resulted in the death and injury of more than 180 people, most of whom are innocent women and children.
 He stressed Gambia’s condemnation of the recently proposed plans to displace Palestinians from the Gaza Strip, stressing that these proposals are provocative, brutal and inhumane, especially at a time when the people of Gaza, the Palestinians and the international community are considering the next positive steps to end the Palestinian-Israeli conflict following the recently reached ceasefire agreement.
 He stressed that now is the right time for the international community to make more concerted efforts to establish a comprehensive and permanent ceasefire that would lead to Israel's full withdrawal from the occupied Palestinian territories, reiterating that the two-state solution is a prerequisite for stability and peace in the Middle East region.
 Tangara expressed his deep concern over the recent issuance by the Israeli parliament (Knesset) of laws banning the work of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), which is in complete contradiction with the UN Charter and international law.
 In his speech, Secretary-General of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation Hussein Ibrahim Taha stressed support for the reconstruction plan for the Gaza Strip, which was adopted by the Arab Summit, while adhering to the right of the Palestinian people to remain in their land, as it represents a common and realistic vision that requires everyone to mobilize the necessary financial and political support to implement it, within the framework of an integrated political and economic path to achieve the vision of the two-state solution. He warned of the danger of the unacceptable Israeli measures and attempts to liquidate the Palestinian refugee issue.
 The OIC Secretary-General stressed that the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) and its vital role in serving millions of Palestinian refugees cannot be dispensed with or replaced, while stressing the need to double political, financial and legal support for the Agency.
 He added that the meeting is being held amidst the challenges facing the Palestinian cause as a result of Israel, the occupying power, continuing its occupation, settlement, daily crimes, annexation plans, and forced displacement of the Palestinian people from their land, changing the geographical and demographic features of the occupied Palestinian territory, and its attempts to Judaize the Holy City of Jerusalem and violate the sanctity of its holy sites, in addition to the siege, starvation, arrests, storming of Palestinian cities and camps, and the destruction of their infrastructure and homes.
 The Secretary-General called for further concerted efforts to achieve a sustainable ceasefire, the complete withdrawal of the occupying forces, the delivery of humanitarian aid, assistance to the displaced to return to their homes, enabling the Palestinian government to assume its duties, preserving the unity of the Palestinian territory, including the Gaza Strip, the West Bank and East Jerusalem, implementing emergency relief programmes, economic recovery and reconstruction, and providing international protection for the Palestinians.
 For his part, Palestinian Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates Mohammad Mustafa called for the adoption of the Palestinian-Egyptian plan for the reconstruction of Gaza as a joint Arab-Islamic initiative. He emphasized that the plan ensures the rebuilding of the Gaza Strip by Palestinian hands, firmly rooted in their land without displacement, with regional and international support, as part of the path toward the realization of the State of Palestine and the development of its institutions and economy.
 Mustafa stressed that the success of the plan depends primarily on obligating Israel to stop the aggression, ensuring the return of the displaced, the withdrawal of the occupation forces, the opening of the crossings, the sustainability of the ceasefire, the entry of the necessary building materials and equipment, and the provision of the necessary financial support.
 The Palestinian Prime Minister called for intensifying efforts to mobilize international support, and escalating political, diplomatic, legal and economic pressure on the occupying state, until the Palestinian people obtain their full, undiminished legitimate rights, crowned by the freedom of our people, their sovereignty over their land, and Jerusalem as the eternal capital of the State of Palestine.
 He stressed that the unity of the Islamic position and the collective commitment towards Palestine is the path and effective tool to confront Israeli arrogance and achieve peace and stability in the region.
 It is noteworthy that the meeting witnessed the announcement of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation of Syria’s return, after the decision of the foreign ministers to resume its membership in the organization