Saudi King Absent in OIC Meeting on Palestine, Amman Publicizes Differences with Riyadh

Rasa - The extraordinary meeting of the Organization of the Islamic Cooperation (OIC) on Palestine was held in Istanbul on Friday in the absence of Saudi King Salman, while Jordan's king looked undeterred to show narrowing differences with Qatar, Turkey and Iran and distancing his country from Saudi, UAE, Bahraini policy of rapprochement with Israel.

News ID: 437784

Date: 19 May 2018 - 22:33

RNA - The declaration issued at the end of the OIC conference described the US decision to relocate its embassy to Jerusalem al-Quds as "unlawful" which could “trigger chaos in the region".

“We reaffirmed once again the vital importance of preserving the sanctity and historical status of Al-Quds and Haram Al-Sharif for the whole Muslim Ummah, emphasizing that the Muslim Ummah could strongly defend its causes globally only by acting in unity and solidarity,” the declaration signed by 48 countries said.

During the conference held in the absence of the Saudi King and PA president, Jordanian King Abdullah II sat beside Qatari Emir Tamim bin Ahmed al-Thani, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Iranian President Hassan Rouhani.

According to Fars News Agancy, analysts believe that the move indicates Jordan's different stance with Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Bahrain which are rapidly moving towards normalization of ties with Israel.

Meantime, the Jordanian media said that King Abdullah II and the Qatari king have had intimate talks during the conference.

Addressing the conference, the Jordanian king said that "the violence, aggression, and violations perpetrated by Israel against the brotherly Palestinian people in Gaza and elsewhere in the Palestinian Territories must stop. The international community must uphold its responsibilities before history; peoples of the world and all people of conscience must uphold their responsibilities in protecting the Palestinian people and enabling them to gain their rights and end occupation, injustice, and despair".

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