Preparatory Meeting for OIC for 50th Session kicks off in Jeddah

The General Secretariat of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) held today, Sunday, August 4, 2024, at its headquarters in Jeddah, the senior official preparatory meeting to the 50th session of the OIC Council of Foreign Ministers (CFM), which will be held in Yaoundé, Republic of Cameroon, on August 29-30, 2024.

His Excellency Mr. Hissein Brahim Taha, the OIC Secretary-General, delivered a speech in which he extended his sincere congratulations to the Republic of Cameroon, which assumed the presidency of the CFM 50th session, and expressed his deep appreciation to the Islamic Republic of Mauritania for the valuable efforts it made and the initiatives it launched during its presidency of the 49th session.

The Secretary-General also praised the generous support by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the host country of the OIC, to the Organization, and its unwavering commitment to strengthening joint Islamic action and the special attention it gives to the Organization’s activities, under the patronage of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, and His Royal Highness Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Crown Prince and Prime Minister.

Hissein Brahim Taha said that the three-day meeting of senior officials is being held at a time when the cause of Palestine and Al-Quds Ash-Sharif is facing serious challenges and serious developments due to the unprecedented Israeli military aggression on the Gaza Strip and all parts of the Palestinian territories, including the occupied city of Al-Quds, in flagrant violation of international law and relevant UN resolutions. He stressed the need to consolidate the efforts of the OIC member states at the international level to exercise further pressure to implement the UN Security Council and General Assembly resolutions calling for an immediate cessation of the Israeli military aggression, to ensure adequate and sustainable access to humanitarian aid throughout the Gaza Strip, lift the inhumane Israeli blockade, and support the UNRWA.

In his speech, the Secretary-General reviewed the Organization’s efforts and initiatives regarding the situation in Afghanistan, Jammu and Kashmir, establishing peace, security, stability and development in all OIC regions, defending the rights of Muslim communities and minorities in non-member states, and the OIC humanitarian work, especially the efforts to host an international donors’ conference at the General Secretariat headquarters in Jeddah next October, to mobilize resources to address the challenges facing refugees and displaced persons in northeastern Nigeria, Lake Chad and the Sahel region.