OIC Ramallah Office’s Workshop Warns that Al-Quds is Exposed to 100 excavations

A workshop organized by the office of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation in Palestine at the headquarters of the Popular National Conference For Jerusalem in Ramallah on December 10, 2019, stated that more than a hundred excavations have been carried out under the occupied Al-Quds since the Israeli occupation of the city in 1967. The workshop stressed that these include four excavations under and around the blessed Al Aqsa Mosque, And 5 below the old town, in addition to five others below the town of Silwan, and eight in other separate locations, as well as 57 holes and tunnels that penetrate the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque. The organization, in cooperation with the Islamic-Christian Committee for Supporting Jerusalem and the Holy Sites, helorganized the workshop entitled “Israeli Excavations ... Search for Illusions of Establishing a Jewish City”, with the participation of representatives from the official of Al-Quds city authorities and experts on Al-Quds affairs. Ambassador Ahmed Al-Ruwaidi, Director of the Representative Office of the OIC in Palestine, in a speech delivered on behalf of the Secretary General of the Organization, Dr. Yousef Al-Othaimeen, indicated that the sponsorship of the symposium comes within the framework of media and cultural efforts that the organization seeks to launch periodically to highlight the Islamic and Arab identity of Jerusalem and address Israeli policies aimed at Judaizing it, on the occasion of the fiftieth anniversary of the founding of the organization. Al-Ruwaidi stressed the commitment of OIC to enhance communication with Jerusalemites to empower them and to also to follow up the ongoing attacks by the occupation against them and the Al-Aqsa Mosque. He added that the OIC would continue to work to coordinate positions and efforts to mobilize and defend international support, and to express absolute refusal to changing the legal and historical status of Al-Aqsa. Al-Ruwaidi considered as irresponsible the attitudes of some countries that recognized Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and that the settlements are consistent with international law.e Islamic-Christian Committee for Supporting Jerusalem and the Holy Sites said that the most dangerous issue about the decision of the US President Trump on 6-12-2017 is not only the transfer of the capital, but declaring the city of Jerusalem as Jewish, and thus deny the Christian and Islamic presence in it, indicating that what the occupation is doing under Jerusalem is building a whole city under Al-Aqsa. He pointed out that there are 29 settlements in the city of Jerusalem, 15 of which are in the eastern part and the rest in the west. As for Al-Quds, there are 43 settlements aiming to change the nature of the city through excavations taking place in full swing, and the Al-Aqsa area is now surrounded by 105 Jewish synagogues. Note that there are 107 mosques in Jerusalem, 43 of which are in the Old City, and 95 churches. Issa continued: “All of this comes within a programmed framework aimed at emptying the city of Jerusalem of its indigenous people, creating a new Jewish character, and establishing the greater capital of Israel on an area of 600 square kilometers.” For his part, General Bilal Al-Natsheh, Secretary General of the Popular National Conference For Jerusalem said: “The division of Jerusalem aims primarily at stopping Arab from gatherings in it, which is what Israel considers a burden on it and its public budget, and fears that one day it will wake up to Jerusalem with an Arab majority.”

On his part, the Grand Mufti of Jerusalem and Palestinian homes, Muhammad Hussein, said: “In all the eras that the Arabs have maintained their presence in Jerusalem, they have proven that Jerusalem is theirs, despite all the nations and invaders that passed by, including today that the occupation is conducting excavations in the city.” He explained that the excavations began in Jerusalem before 1967, and researchers realize that it started through a British school of archeology that was present in Jerusalem and its beginning was in the Wadi Hilweh region, and then continued to demolish the Mughrabi neighborhood, which the Israeli occupation turned to a gateway for aggression. Deputy Governor of Al-Quds city Abdullah Siyam said: The excavations are a big plan, part of the procedures of displacement and killing, and the pressures faced by the Jerusalemites with a continuous program around Jerusalem that consists in expelling its people, displacing settlers, and closing institutions, until it became a daily scene by subjecting people to judaization under the American bias. He stressed that the excavations started by the occupation with a religious research story, concluded in destructive measures not only in the Old City, but in Jerusalem as a whole, to link the Old City with its surrounding settlements, calling for positions that translate to real actions to address this scheme.

The Organization of Islamic Cooperation expressed its rejection and condemnation of the statements of the US Secretary of State “that the Israeli colonial settlement is in line with international law”. The organization also rejected and condemned the decision of the Republic of Nauru to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. The organization considered the American statement as a flagrant violation of international law and United Nations resolutions, especially UN Security Council resolutions 446, 452, 465, 476, 478 and 2334, which all confirm that Israeli settlements are illegal and constitutes an attack on the rights of the Palestinian people. The organization stressed that this US stance is aligned to the Israeli occupation and is a challenge to the international consensus, but will not accord any legitimacy to the settlements. It would undermine the international rule of law and international efforts to achieve peace based on the vision of a two-state solution. The OIC also called on the international community, and in particular the UN Security Council, to assume its responsibilities and take concrete measures to fully halt the Israeli settlement policy on the entire occupied Palestinian territory, including the Holy City of Al-Quds, in order to achieve peace based on the vision of a two-state solution and contribute to spreading security and stability in the region and the world. With regard to Nauru’s recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, OIC considered that the illegal move constitutes a violation of international law and United Nations resolutions on Jerusalem, particularly UN Security Council Resolution 478, which calls on countries that have established diplomatic missions in Jerusalem to withdraw these missions from the Holy City. At the same time, it called on the Nauru government to reverse this decision and respect its legal and political obligations under international law and international legitimacy resolutions. Earlier, the organization condemned the storming of the courtyards of the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque, by groups of extremist settlers with the participation of the Israeli Minister of Agriculture and under the protection of the Israeli occupation forces, considering it an extension of Israel’s repeated violations of the sanctity of holy sites, and a flagrant violation of the Geneva Conventions and international law. The OIC also strongly condemned the military aggression carried out by the Israeli occupation forces on the Gaza Strip, considering it a flagrant violation of international humanitarian law and international agreements. On the other hand, the organization marked the anniversary of the Balfour Declaration on November 2, 2019, which was 102 years old, and it was the promise that called for the establishment of a national homeland for Jews on the land of Palestine, and whose serious repercussions formed the beginning of the ongoing Palestinian catastrophe in all its dimensions. It resulted in the establishment of the Israeli occupation state and its accompanying policies of killing, forced displacement, ethnic cleansing, illegal settlements, land confiscation, property destruction, and the denial of the legitimate national rights of the Palestinian people. On the other hand, the organization welcomed the vote in favor of a number of draft resolutions on Palestine in the Fourth Committee of the United Nations General Assembly, especially the decision to renew the mandate of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine (UNRWA) for the next three years, which was adopted by a majority of 170 votes as against only two-state that voted against the resolution.

The Secretary General of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), Dr. Yousef bin Ahmed Al-Othaimeen stressed that the Foreign Ministers of the Organization have condemned in the strongest terms and unanimously the targeting of two Saudi Aramco plants in Abqaiq and Khurais Governorate, eastern Saudi Arabia. He made the declaration on the sidelines of the emergency meeting of the OIC Foreign Ministers on September 15 in Jeddah, which was devoted to discuss “the announcement of the Prime Minister of the Israeli occupation of his intention to annex lands from the occupied West Bank.” In a statement, the Secretary-General said that the ministers expressed their condemnation of the terrorist incident, and praised the official statements issued by member and non-members and regional and international organizations that condemned and denounced these attacks that could lead to destabilization of security and stability in the Kingdom and the region, and targeting global energy supplies and the global economy. He explained that the ministers expressed the solidarity of their countries with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in all the measures it takes to confront terrorism and preserve its security and stability, praising the pivotal role it plays in combating terrorism. The ministers also demanded serious actions against this wicked attack and those behind it and supporting its perpetrators, considering that prejudice to the security of the Kingdom is a prejudice to the security and cohesion of the Islamic world. At their meeting, the ministers asked the Secretary General to inform the United Nations and regional organizations of this position and to prepare a report thereon for the next ministerial meeting. The Secretary General had on September 14, 2019 condemned the targeting of the two Aramco plants in the Abqaiq and Khurais Governorate in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, with drones.

OIC welcomes the formation of the Sudanese government The Organization of Islamic Cooperation anCooperation to the Republic of Sudan in the inspection tour to assess the damage that nounced that it welcomed the formation of process of rebuilding and achieving peace occurred to educational and health instituthe transitional government in the Republic and security. tions in Khartoum State, with the aim of of Sudan, after the Sudanese Prime Minister, On the other hand, Dr. Al-Othaimeen disthe organization’s contribution to the reconDr. Abdullah Hamdouk announced the new patched an urgent aid in the health sector struction efforts of schools and hospitals afministerial formation. to those affected by the flood in various fected by the disaster. The Secretary General of the Organization states of Sudan. On September 09, 2019, a The OIC Secretary General renewed his apDr. Yousef bin Ahmed Al-Othaimeen, in a delegation from the Organization of Islamic peal to OIC member states to provide hustatement, expressed his welcome to the Cooperation and the Islamic Solidarity Fund manitarian assistance to Sudan at this critiministerial formation, and expressed his arrived in the Sudanese capital Khartoum to cal stage in its history, especially after the hope that this step will contribute to endeliver this assistance. formation of the new government, in the hancing peace, security and development The delegation met with officials of the Sucontext of providing economic support to for the dear Sudan. Al-Othaimeen affirmed danese Ministry of Health and the HumaniSudan in order to improve its current situthe support of the Organization of Islamic tarian Aid Commission. They conducted an ation.