UNSC asked to halt Israeli offensive

GAZA: Smoke rises following an Israeli air strike in the Gaza Strip, as seen from southern Israel. At least 45 percent of Gaza’s housing units have been damaged or destroyed in Israeli attacks. –Agencies

——- Joint Arab Islamic Summit’s resolution calls upon UNSC to condemn destruction in Gaza
——- Asks to ensure immediate cessation of Israeli escalation
——- OIC countries’ envoys in Brussels also call for immediate ceasefire in Gaza
——- Hold Israel accountable for war crimes
——- Meanwhile Gaza death toll reaches 11,240 including 4,630 children

By Asghar Ali Mubarak

ISLAMABAD: The Joint Arab Islamic Extraordinary Summit which was held in Riyadh on Saturday called upon the United Nations Security Council to adopt a resolution to condemn the destruction, displace-ment, and prevention of basic services and needs in Gaza and to ensure immediate cessation of Israeli military escalation.
A press statement issued on Monday said that the summit further demanded lifting of the Israeli ille-gal siege, ensure delivery of humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip and compel the colonial occupation to abide by the international laws.
The joint extraordinary Arab and Islamic Summit held in Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, on 11 No-vember had concluded its work in the presence of Heads of State and Government of the Organiza-tion of Islamic Cooperation and the League of Arab States, a press statement said.
The two organizations in the resolution adopted by the joint summit underscored the centrality of the Palestinian cause and their support with all their capabilities for the legitimate struggle of the Palestini-an people to liberate all their occupied territories and the need to end the Israeli aggression against the Palestinian people and to separate Gaza from the West Bank, including Al Quds Al Sharif.
“The resolution affirmed that Israel and all the states in the region will never enjoy security and peace unless Palestinians enjoy them and reclaim all their usurped rights,”.
he resolution mandated the foreign ministers of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia as Chair of the Arab Summit (32), and the Islamic Summit and of Jordan, Egypt, Qatar, Turkiye, Indonesia, Nigeria, Pales-tine, and any other interested country and the secretary generals of the two organizations to start immediate international action on behalf of all member states of the Organization and the League to initiate an international action to stop the war on Gaza.
The resolutions also demanded that all countries stop exporting weapons and ammunitions to the oc-cupation authorities that are used by their army and terrorist settlers to kill the Palestinian people and destroy their homes, hospitals, schools, mosques, churches, and all their properties.
The resolution mandated the two General Secretariats of the OIC and the League of Arab States to establish two specialized legal monitoring units to document all the crimes of the occupation authori-ties in the Gaza Strip since 7 October 2023 and to prepare evidence on the Israeli violations.
It affirmed its support for the legal and political initiatives of the State of Palestine at the International Court of Justice (ICJ), the International Criminal Court (ICC), and the Human Rights Council (HRC).
It also requested the prosecutor of the ICC to continue its investigation into the war crimes and crimes against humanity perpetrated by Israel against the Palestinian people.
The resolution called for convening an international peace conference, as soon as possible, noting that a just, durable, and comprehensive peace was the only way to achieve that on the basis of interna-tional legitimacy resolutions and the Arab Peace Initiative as basic terms of reference and renewed adherence to all its provisions and priorities.
The resolution contained political, legal, and humanitarian steps, including breaking the siege on Gaza, ensuring the entry of Arab, Islamic, and international humanitarian aid convoys, and supporting Egypt’s efforts to deliver aid to the Strip in an immediate, sustainable, and sufficient manner.
It also called on the international organizations to participate in this process.
It described the ongoing Israeli aggression as a retaliatory war crime that could not be justified under any guise.
“The resolution also included the activation of the Arab and Islamic Financial Safety Net to provide as-sistance and financial, economic, and humanitarian support to the Government of the State of Pales-tine and to UNRWA, and emphasized the need to mobilize international partners to reconstruct Gaza and mitigate the effects of the massive destruction caused by the Israeli aggression as soon as it stops,” the statement said.
The resolution also condemned the military aggression against the Gaza Strip and the war crimes and barbaric, brutal, and inhuman massacres committed by the colonial occupation government and the military operations against Palestinian cities and camps, the settlers’ terrorism, and Israeli attacks on Islamic and Christian holy places in Al-Quds and the illegal Israeli measures that violated freedom of worship.