Holding Israel “fully responsible for the heinous attack” that killed Hamas political chief Ismail Haniyeh in Iran on July 31, the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) has requested “immediate and effective intervention” by the UN Security Council for maintaining international peace and security.
In a statement issued after its extraordinary meeting in Jeddah on Wednesday, the OIC termed Israel’s action, a “flagrant violation of international laws, the UN Charter, and a serious infringement of the sovereignty, and territorial integrity” of Iran.
“Strongly condemns the assassination of Mr. Ismail Haniyeh, former Palestinian Prime Minister, while he was in Tehran, capital city of Iran, and holds Israel, the illegal occupying power, fully responsible for this heinous attack, which constitutes a crime of aggression, a flagrant violation of international law and the UN Charter and a serious infringement of the sovereignty, territorial integrity and national security of the Islamic Republic of Iran, warns that the ongoing crimes of Israel, the illegal occupying power, undermines security and stability in the region, and requests immediate and effective intervention by the UN Security Council, within its primary responsibility for maintaining international peace and security,” the OIC said.
The meeting was held to discuss the “ongoing crimes” by Israel against the Palestinian People and its infringing on the sovereignty of Iran.
In the statement, the OIC condemned the “continued war crimes, aggression and genocide committed by Israel, the illegal occupying power, in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, including the City of Al-Quds Ash-Sharif.
It has demanded an immediate end to “Israeli aggression and the policy of torture, starvation, and collective punishment against the Palestinian people” and rejected by all possible means any attempt at displacement, expulsion, or forcible transfer of the Palestinian people from their land.
The members of the OIC have urged the United Nations and the UN Security Council to put an end to the Israeli aggression against the Palestinian people, to ensure adequate and sustainable access to humanitarian aid throughout the Gaza Strip, as per resolutions 2720 and 2728, and to provide protection for defenceless Palestinian civilians.
It urged all States to take the necessary measures to stop Israel from continuing its “crimes against the Palestinian people” and to ensure respect for and implementation of the relevant UN resolutions as well as the ICJ provisional measures on the crime of genocide.
In the statement, the OIC stated, “Calls upon all OIC Member States to stand in solidarity against the illegal acts by the Israeli occupying power, which exacerbate the conflict in the region and threaten regional peace and security, through taking the necessary diplomatic, legal and political measures to reverse the escalation in the region, and striving to find a path towards regional and international peace and stability.”
It warned against the continued “incursions” into the Al-Aqsa Mosque/Al-Haram Al-Sharif, particularly incursions by the Israeli Minister of National Security, which it termed as a “provocative action” and condemned it in the “strongest terms.”
The statement issued after the meeting stated, “Stresses the need to respect the legal and historical status of the Islamic and Christian holy sites in Al-Quds, including the role of Al-Quds Waqf and Al-Aqsa Mosque Affairs Department of the Jordanian Ministry of Awqaf Islamic Affairs and Holy Places, as the sole authority with exclusive jurisdiction responsible for managing all the affairs of the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque (Al-Haram Al-Sharif), and regulating entry into the Mosque, under the historical Hashemite guardianship of the holy sites.”
The OIC members urged all States to refrain from engaging in any kind of assistance or cooperation with Israel and said that it “would prolong Israel’s illegal occupation of the Palestinian territory, grant it impunity, and embolden it to continue its crimes and flagrant violations of international law and relevant UN resolutions.”
The statement said, “Affirms its support for efforts to hold Israel, the illegal occupying power, accountable for its ongoing violations and crimes against the Palestinian people, and welcomes, in this regard, the recent ICJ legal advisory opinion that affirms the illegality of the presence of Israel and its colonial settlement in the occupied Palestinian territory, and calls, in this regard, for taking the necessary measures to end Israel’s illegal occupation of the Palestinian territory as soon as possible.”
Furthermore, the OIC members urged the International Criminal Court to expedite the investigation into the war crimes and crimes “committed” by Israel against the Palestinian people.
During the meeting, Saudi Arabia’s deputy foreign minister, Waleed al-Khereiji, said his country rejects “any violation of the sovereignty of states or interference in the internal affairs of any country,” Al Jazeera reported.
Hamas and Iran have blamed Israel for Haniyeh’s killing in Tehran on July 31. However, the Israeli government has not made any statement on Haniyeh’s killing.
Gambia’s Foreign Minister, Mamadou Tangara, said Haniyeh’s “heinous” killing and the ongoing war in Gaza could cause a regional conflict. He termed the killing a “violation of the sovereignty and territorial integrity” of Iran.
“This heinous act serves only to escalate the existing tensions potentially leading to a wider conflict that could involve the entire region,” he added.
In his remarks at the OIC meeting, Tangara called for “durable peace that addresses the root causes of the [Israeli-Palestinian] conflict,” Al Jazeera reported.
He called it “crucial” for the international community to come together to ensure that humanitarian aid reaches those in need and to work towards a sustainable political solution that promotes peace and security for all people in the region.
Tensions in West Asia have escalated after the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) announced on July 31 that Ismail Haniyeh had been killed in an attack in Iran’s capital, Tehran.
In a statement, the IRGC said that Haniyeh and one of his bodyguards were killed when their house was hit in Tehran.
So far, Israel has not issued any statement on the killing of the Hamas political bureau head. Haniyeh, who was based in Qatar, was in Tehran to attend the swearing-in ceremony of Iran’s newly elected President Masoud Pezeshkian. Haniyeh has been replaced by Hamas’s Gaza chief Yahya Sinwar. (ANI)
