Oman at OIC extraordinary session to discuss Israeli aggression against Palestinians

The Sultanate of Oman took part in an extraordinary session of the Council of Foreign Ministers of the member states of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC). The meeting, held in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, discussed the ongoing Israeli aggression against the Palestinian people.

Sheikh Mohammed Alqatabi, Head of the Foreign Ministry's International Organisations Department, led Oman's delegation. In his speech he stressed the need for an immediate, comprehensive and permanent ceasefire in the Gaza Strip. He also rejected the policy of collective punishment pursued by the Israeli occupation authorities, speaking of the importance of allowing the entry of humanitarian aid without any restrictions or conditions.

Sheikh Mohammed's speech on behalf of Oman reiterated its call to halt the systematic policy of starvation that the Israeli authorities are exercising against innocent civilians and called for the opening all crossings to supply necessary aid.

He added that Oman's position remains steadfast in supporting the Palestinian cause and backing the Palestinian people's access to their legitimate rights, further obstructed by the ongoing Israeli aggression. This, he said, has led to continued humanitarian tragedies, including a state of siege, the destruction of homes and facilities, displacement and deprivation.

He said : “Israel has imposed an illegal occupation by force and is seeking to impose Israeli sovereignty over the West Bank and to exercise complete military control over the Gaza Strip, while at the same time forcibly displacing the residents of the Gaza Strip, depriving them of the most basic human rights, including water, food and medical care, amid escalating violations and repeated incursions.”

Sheikh Mohammed also affirmed the Sultanate's condemnation of the plans of settlement and all illegal measures undertaken by the Israeli occupation forces, noting that those atrocious actions constitute a flagrant violation of international legitimacy and related United Nations resolutions. He added that the pursuit of these practices will exacerbate the humanitarian tragedy and undermine the chances of achieving a just and lasting peace.

Sheikh Mohammed expressed Oman's categorical rejection of attempts to forcibly displace the population of the Gaza Strip, as a crime that contravenes international humanitarian law. He called on the international community to assume its responsibilities by obligating Israel to halt this ongoing aggression against the West Bank and Gaza Strip and to protect Palestinian civilians.

He added that Oman remains committed to the legitimate right of the Palestinian people to self-determination and to establish their independent, sovereign state along the borders of June 4, 1967, with Al Quds A’Sharqiyah (East Jerusalem) as its capital, in accordance with international resolutions and the Arab Peace Initiative.

“Oman hereby reiterates its support for the outcomes of the Palestine Summit and the Gaza Reconstruction Plan adopted in Cairo, as well as the Conference on the Peaceful Settlement of the Palestinian Issue and the Implementation of the Two-State Solution, held in New York under the joint chairmanship of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the French Republic, a conference whose final statement included an agreement to take tangible steps to resolve the Palestinian issue,” said Sheikh Mohammed.

This is an unofficial English version of an Arabic report. To view the official Arabic text, click here.