ARAB AFFAIRS - Dec7-9 - Muslim Leaders Vow to Fight Terror.

The two-day extraordinary summit of the Organization of the Islamic Conference comes to a fitting end with OIC leaders, led by Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah, circumambulating the Holy Kaaba (tawaf) in an unprecedented show of Islamic unity and solidarity. The Muslim leaders, who came from across the globe, were united in the call to combat terrorism and defend the image of Islam. FM Prince Saud Al-Faisal said: All agree on combating terrorism and extremism and stressing the moderate (nature) of Islam". He said the summit leaders stressed the need to stop blaming outside forces for problems in the Muslim world and focus on cooperation. (They agreed) on stressing the importance of cooperation between Muslims; putting an end to complaints of foreign conspiracies; and concentrating on common efforts to face development challenges. Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah opened the summit on Dec 7 with a call for moderation and tolerance and a rejection of extremist violence. "Islamic unity will not be achieved through bloodshed as claimed by the deviants", said King Abdullah in reference to Al Qaeda terrorists. Addressing the concluding session, King Abdullah hoped that the summit would open a new chapter in the history of the Islamic nation. King Abdullah said: Some of its most significant resolutions have stressed the values of tolerance and compassion and unity among Muslims to ensure a prosperous future for the Ummah (the Muslim global community)". While performing the tawaf, King Abdullah was accompanied by prominent leaders, such as Iranian Pres Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Malaysian PM Abdullah Badawi, Sudanese Pres Omar Bashir and OIC Sec Gen Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu. The OIC leaders were also given an opportunity to pray inside the Kaaba. The summit adopted the Makkah Declaration and the 10-year action plan designed to usher in a new era of renaissance in the Muslim world. The final communique issued by the conference urged all member states to fight terrorism in every possible way. It also called for revising the education curricula, with a view to promoting tolerance and understanding among the followers of the Islamic faith. British Minister of State at the Foreign Office, Kim Howells, welcomed the summit declaration to combat terror. "As EU Presidency, we support the call by the Muslim leaders at the OIC summit hosted by Saudi Arabia for a forward-looking vision for the Muslim World. The international community stands with them in their staunch rejection of those who distort the noble faith of Islam. We join them in celebrating the values of Islamic civilization. Their values are our values. We share their unequivocal condemnation of terrorism and their determination to condemn it", he said. Prince Saud called it a summit of moderation and modernisation as the whole conference revolved around these two key themes. Saud said he was very happy at the way the summit had gone and thanked King Abdullah and other OIC leaders for making it a resounding success. "But for King Abdullah we would not have been able to see the light that we have now today". The FM said the summit was a giant step while other delegates pointed out that it would be a turning point of the Islamic world. The prince said: The steps that we have taken today are irreversible". The summit leaders have set up a follow-up committee to oversee the implementation of the 10-year plan in letter and spirit. "I am more optimistic today than I was yesterday", Saud said. He, however, urged the media to keep on reminding OIC leaders of their commitment. He said OIC countries would support a member state if it were attacked by a foreign power. "If anybody genuinely faces threat then there is a mechanism in the 10-year plan charter to help the country against the aggressor", he added. Saud urged Muslim media to project the true image of Islam and to effectively deal with the international media to attain this objective. The summit expressed its concern at rising hatred against Islam and Muslims in the world and condemned the recent incident of the desecration of the image of Prophet Mohammad in the media of certain countries. "It is the responsibility of all governments to ensure full respect for all religions and religious symbols", the communique said, adding that the freedom of expression should not be used as a pretext to defame any religion.

As for political issues, the summit stressed the Palestinian issue as the central concern and called on Israeli forces to withdraw from Palestinian lands, which have been occupied since 1967, in addition to the Syrian Golan Heights and Lebanese lands. An Israeli withdrawal, the summit added, would unify Muslim nations' stands concerning a comprehensive solution for the Palestinian issue in accordance with the UN resolution, the Arab peace initiative and the road map peace plan. The conference stressed the importance of preserving Jerusalem's Islamic and historic identity. The summit also said that OIC member states should allocate the necessary resources to preserve Al Aqsa Mosque, support Palestinian institutions and establish Al Aqsa University in Jerusalem. It also urged OIC member states to co-operate with the international community to stop and dismantle Jewish settlements, and to cease the construction of the Israeli separation wall and remove the parts already built as ruled by the International Court of Justice. The summit urged all Muslim individuals to support the Al-Quds Fund by contributing one dollar in order to preserve the holy sites in Jerusalem, especially the Al Aqsa Mosque. On the Iraqi situation, the summit lauded the Iraqi national reconciliation conference and denounced terrorist operations carried out against the Iraqi people. In addition, the summit affirmed its support for the political process and the reconstruction efforts in Iraq. The summit also expressed support for the people of Kashmir, Turkish Cypriots, the Somali government and the Sudanese peace agreement. The summit proposed the establishment of an independent Islamic human rights organization to monitor human rights in OIC member states. "It called for respecting the human rights of the Kashmiri people and agreed to provide all possible political and diplomatic support to the true representatives of the Kashmiri people in their struggle against foreign occupation", the communique said. It also proposed establishing a free-trade zone for the member states and stressed the importance of increasing trade among member countries. Senegal Pres Abdullah Wad, who is the upcoming President of the OIC, said Muslim leaders should have the political will to restore the Islamic world's past glory. He called for the establishment of a special fund to fight poverty to achieve sustainable development. He also proposed to increase the capital of the Islamic Development Bank to finance long-term and big projects. He welcomed the leaders to the next summit in Senegal. OIC Sec Gen Ihsanoglu said the Makkah Declaration "implies self-criticism and correction as the basis for development and progress of the organization". The member states expressed their determination to upgrade their legislations to toughen penalties against terrorist actions and to cooperate with the international community to eradicate terrorism. The summit emphasized the need to make optimal use of the human, natural and economic resources of the Muslim world in order to promote this co-operation; accede and implement the agreements and resolutions concluded; and support the activities of the Standing Committee for Economic and Commercial Cooperation (COMCEC). The Conference decided to take practical steps toward achieving scientific and technological development, with a view to supporting sustainable development in OIC member states.