Morocco Calls on OIC Member States to Set Asides Differences, Resolve Disputes

Morocco Calls on OIC Member States to Set Asides Differences, Resolve Disputes
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Morocco Calls on OIC Member States to Set Asides Differences, Resolve Disputes

Morocco Calls on OIC Member States to Set Asides Differences, Resolve Disputes

Moroccan Speaker Habib El Malki called Monday on the Organization of Islamic Cooperation member states to set aside their differences and work on resolving them through dialogue.

“We must leave the controversial issues aside and resolve differences with dialogue and conviction,” Malki said at the opening of the 41st meeting of the PUIC Executive Committee, which is being held as part of the 14th session of the Conference of the Parliamentary Union of the OIC Member States (PUIC).

The meeting will be held until March 14 and aims to discuss a number of topics, including the activities of the political affairs and foreign relations committee and economic and environment affairs committee.

Malki said Islamic countries are facing unprecedented challenges that are complicated by regional and international crises, while “our people aspire to enjoy social and economic rights, stability and dignity.”

He said the OIC must adopt internal dialogue to work out and overcome differences, adding that solutions cannot be found in one pack but should be built on accumulations and be based on a vision, which is the closest to reality.

The speaker said having different views is the essence of democracy, which should bring benefits to people despite their differences.

PUIC Secretary-General, Senegalese Mohamed Khouraichi Niass said Muslims are facing the challenges of the unjust world order.

“No one ignores that the voice of Muslims is now heard at international forums and also, everyone is aware of the maltreatment of Muslims, which requires our unity to defend our just causes,” he said.

The PUIC was established in June 1999. It includes 54 parliaments and 22 regional and international organizations and parliaments with an observer status.



UN Rights Chief ‘Gravely Concerned’ by Lebanon Escalation

Smoke billows above Beirut’s southern suburbs following an Israeli airstrike on November 26, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hezbollah. (AFP)
Smoke billows above Beirut’s southern suburbs following an Israeli airstrike on November 26, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hezbollah. (AFP)
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UN Rights Chief ‘Gravely Concerned’ by Lebanon Escalation

Smoke billows above Beirut’s southern suburbs following an Israeli airstrike on November 26, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hezbollah. (AFP)
Smoke billows above Beirut’s southern suburbs following an Israeli airstrike on November 26, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hezbollah. (AFP)

The UN rights chief on Tuesday voiced concern about the escalation of hostilities in Lebanon, where his office said nearly 100 people had been reported killed by Israeli airstrikes in recent days, including women, children and medics.

Israel has been locked in fighting with Lebanese armed group Hezbollah since Oct. 2023, and fighting has escalated dramatically since late September of this year.

"UN Human Rights Chief Volker Turk is gravely concerned by the escalation in Lebanon with at least 97 people reportedly killed in Israeli airstrikes between the 22nd and 24th of November," Jeremy Laurence, a spokesperson for the Office of the High Commissioner of Human Rights, told a Geneva press briefing.

He said that at least seven paramedics had been reported killed in three Israeli strikes in the south of Lebanon on Nov. 22-23, adding to 226 healthcare worker deaths since Oct. 7, 2023. He did not specify how many of the recent deaths had been verified by UN human rights monitors.

Israel says it targets military capabilities in Lebanon and Gaza and takes steps to mitigate the risk of harm to civilians. It accuses Hezbollah, like Hamas, of hiding among civilians, which they deny.