Muslim leaders reject Trump's decision on Jerusalem

AL JAZEERA

December 13, 2017

Dec 13: The Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) has rejected the United States' decision to recognise Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, the group's secretary general announced.

Yousef al-Othaimeen, speaking on Wednesday at the opening of an OIC summit in Istanbul, urged Muslim leaders to work together to present a united response to the move.

"The OIC rejects and condemns the American decision," he said. "This is a violation of international law ... and this is a provocation of the feelings of Muslims within the world ... it will create a situation of instability in the region and in the world."

Speaking ahead of Othaimeen, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said the US has "disqualified" itself from future Israel-Palestine peace talks after proving its "bias in favour of Israel".

Founded in 1969, the 57-member OIC bills itself as "the collective voice of the Muslim world".

President Donald Trump announced on December 6 that the US formally recognises Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and will begin the process of moving its embassy to the city, breaking with decades of US policy.

The decision violated international law, according to Abbas.

"We shall not accept any role for the United States in the peace process, they have proven their full bias in favour of Israel," he said.

"Jerusalem is and always will be the capital of Palestine."

Palestinians envisage East Jerusalem as the capital of a future state, while Israel says Jerusalem, which is under Israeli occupation, cannot be divided.

Abbas' comments were seen as his strongest yet on the issue.

The extraordinary OIC summit was called for by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan following Trump's announcement.

Speaking at the meeting, Erdogan accused Israel of being a "state of terror" and said the US' recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel has been rebuked by the international community.

"It is null and void … except Israel, no country in the world has supported [this decision]," he said.

"Anyone who walks a few minutes in the streets of Jerusalem will recognise this city is under occupation."

Al Jazeera's Mohammed Adow, reporting from Istanbul, said Erdogan was seeking to "unite the Muslim world" and "come up with a concerted response" to the US' move.

"He faces a daunting task," our correspondent said. "In the hall that he was addressing, there were countries who are not willing to go beyond rhetoric opposition at the expense of sacrificing their relationship with the United States," he said.

Trump's move has provoked a wave of protests from Asia, through the Middle East, to North Africa, with tens of thousands of people taking to the streets in recent days to denounce his decision.

Comments

Add new comment

Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.

Israel launches new aggression on residential neighbourhood in Lebanon’s capital, many killed

News Network

November 24,2025

Israel has launched a new act of aggression on a residential neighborhood in Lebanon's capital, Beirut, killing and injuring about two dozen civilians.

The Israeli regime's military said in a statement that its forces carried out a so-called precise strike in a residential apartment in Dahiyeh in the southern suburbs of Beirut on Sunday.

The aggression targeted residential areas, killing at least five people and injuring more than 28 people, Lebanon's Health Ministry said.

Hezbollah announced the martyrdom of senior Hezbollah commander Haytham Ali Tabatabai and four resistance fighters.

Lebanese President Michel Aoun condemned the airstrike, calling it a clear demonstration of Tel Aviv’s disregard for repeated international calls to halt violations on Lebanese soil.

“Israel refuses to implement international resolutions and all efforts aimed at ending the escalation and restoring stability,” Aoun said, urging the international community to take action to prevent further aggression.

The Palestinian Islamic Jihad movement also condemned the attack, holding the international community accountable.

“The international community bears responsibility and continues to provide cover for these attacks as long as it does not restrain the occupiers,” said Ali Abu Shahin, a member of the group’s political bureau.

Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office announced that the Israeli army carried out a strike “in the heart of Beirut."

Netanyahu reportedly approved the operation following recommendations from top Israeli security officials.

Two senior US officials commented on the Israeli strike.

The first official said that Israel did not notify Americans in advance about the attack. "We were informed immediately after the strike was carried out."

The second senior official said that the "US knew for several days that Israel was planning to escalate its strikes in Lebanon, but did not know in advance the timing, location, or target of the strike."

Speaking from the site of the Israeli strike, Lebanese MP Ali Ammar condemned the attack as part of a broader campaign of aggression that has targeted "all of Lebanon since the Washington-sponsored ceasefire."

He stated that "any attack on Lebanon is a violation of red lines; this aggression is part and parcel of the entity that targets Lebanon's dignity, sovereignty, and security of citizens."

Ammar went on to say the resistance is responding with "utmost wisdom, patience, and will confront the enemy at the appropriate time."

"Unfortunately, the enemy is emboldened to commit its aggression by voices within Lebanon that have turned themselves into tools that support its aggression," he added.

The Israeli attack on the southern suburbs of the Lebanese capital is the latest blatant violation of the ceasefire Israel signed with Hezbollah in November 2024, which was intended to end hostilities that had escalated into full-scale war.

An Israeli strike on the Ain al-Hilweh camp near Sidon in southern Lebanon late Tuesday killed at least 14 people. It wounded several others, including young students, according to the Lebanese health ministry.

The military claimed the attack targeted “a Hamas training compound” used to plan and carry out attacks against the regime -- a claim that has frequently been made without evidence.

Hamas rejected the allegations as “a blatant lie aimed at justifying the massacre,” stating it had “no military installations in the Palestinian camps in Lebanon” and that the targeted site was merely “an open sports field.”

According to Lebanese authorities, Israeli attacks have killed approximately 4,000 people and displaced more than 1.2 million residents across the country since October 2023.

Comments