Summit to tackle Syria, Myanmar

Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) Secretary-General Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu welcomed the call by Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah to hold an extraordinary Islamic summit in Makkah on Aug. 14-15 to discuss the grave situation in a number of Muslim countries and chalk out ways to solve them. “The tragic situation in Syria and the plight of Rohingya Muslims in Myanmar will figure on top of the agenda of the summit,” he said at a press conference held in the OIC headquarters here yesterday.
The summit is being called to intensify efforts to contain division and dissension among Muslims as well as to strengthen Islamic unity and solidarity. King Abdullah has invited Muslim heads of state and leaders to attend the conference. Ihsanoglu also unveiled plans of OIC to raise $500 million in aid from member countries to help the Syrian people who have been displaced in the current conflict. The humanitarian crisis in Syria has grown to such dimensions that at least $500 million in aid is required to meet the needs of the Syrian people, he said in an appeal to donors.
Syria is in the throes of a revolt against the government of President Bashar Al-Assad, whose efforts to crush the uprising by force have driven thousands of civilians from their homes, many of them into Syria’s neighbors. “We are calling for increased humanitarian efforts and cooperation between international and regional organizations in order to deliver urgent humanitarian aid to the Syrian people in Syria and in neighboring countries,” he said.

Referring to the ongoing OIC initiatives to alleviate the suffering of Rohingya Muslims as well as to end their persecution at the hands of the majority community, Ihsanoglu said that an extraordinary meeting of the OIC executive committee would be held in Jeddah on Aug. 5.
Sayed Waqaruddin, president of Arakan Rohingya Federation, has been invited to the conference. The federation was formed under the auspices of OIC at a meeting of 25 non-governmental organizations of Rohingya Muslims held at the headquarters of OIC in May 2011.
According to the OIC chief, a consultative meeting is being convened in Kuala Lumpur to explore the prospect of dispatching aid to the Rohingya Muslims. “More than 20 humanitarian NGOs will take part in the meeting to discuss the challenges faced by them in sending humanitarian assistance to the Muslim refugees. OIC would further bolster its cooperation and coordination with the international community in solving this crisis,” he added.