The 14th session of the Conference of the Union of Councils of the Member States of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) concluded yesterday in Rabat, which began on Sunday under the patronage of King Mohammed VI of Morocco. The Shura Council delegation was led by its speaker Dr. Abdullah bin Mohammed bin Ibrahim Al Al-Sheikh. The heads and members of the delegations of the OIC member states participating in the session stressed through Rabat Declaration the responsibility of the international community in settling the conflict in the Middle East and in particular the empowerment of the Palestinian people to restore all their legitimate rights and the establishment of an independent state with Jerusalem (Al-Quds) as its capital and working for returning of Palestinian refugees to their homeland, in accordance with the relevant resolutions of international legitimacy. Rabat Declaration called on the United Nations and its specialized agencies to provide specialized protection for the Palestinian people and for architectural and cultural monuments in the occupied territories and working for releasing Palestinian prisoners and detainees and for lifting the siege and injustice on the Gaza Strip, expressing condemnation of the daily Israeli occupation's violations and attacks against the Palestinian people. The heads of the Councils of OIC Member States stressed that the Israeli occupation is the core of the conflict in the Middle East and the origin of its problems, demanding the international community to put an end to the Israeli occupation of the remaining territories of Lebanon and the Syrian Golan. The participants reiterated their rejection of extremist terrorist ideology, expressing their condemnation of terrorism, which targets many Islamic and non-Muslim countries, calling for addressing its roots and causes, and strengthening cooperation among members of the international community to achieve this goal. In this regard, the heads of the Councils of the OIC Member States called for addressing extremist and fanatical speeches whatever their source, stressing in the same time their rejection of linking terrorism to Islam and Muslims and exploiting it in campaigns against Islam and Islamic civilization. The Declaration stressed the protection of Muslim communities in non-Muslim countries, in accordance with the principles of human rights and freedom of belief, the rejection of Islamophobia, hatred speeches and racist practices against these minorities in some countries. The heads of the Councils of the OIC Member States expressed their thanks and gratitude to King Mohammed VI of Morocco for his patronage of the 14th Session of the Conference of the Union of Councils of the OIC Member States.
