Morocco gives Jerusalem fund $ three million
Regional-Morocco, Culture, 2/14/2000

King Mohammed VI of Morocco handed to Palestinian president, Yasser Arafat, a donation of three million dollars for Bayt Al-Mal Al-Quds which opened this Monday a meeting of its governing board.

The Moroccan king is chairman of Al-Quds committee which set up in 1995 the Bayt Mal Al-Quds to look for funding sources to preserve the holy city of Al-Quds against Israel's attempts to obliterate its Arab and Muslim demography and architecture.

Palestinian president, Yasser Arafat, is attending the session, together with representatives of 16 Islamic member countries: Jordan, Indonesia, Iran, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Senegal, Iraq, Guinea, Palestine, Egypt, Mauritania, Niger, Lebanon and Morocco. Other members are the Palestinian ambassador in Morocco as chairman of Bayt Mal Al-Quds, Abu Marwane, and secretary general of the Jeddah-based Organization of Islamic Conference, Azzedine Laraki.

The Marrakesh meeting agenda is topped by a one-year emergency plan worth $ 40 million to carry out a series of health, education and housing projects to support the resistance of the city inhabitants and help them remain on their land.

According to the Palestinian ambassador, this assistance will make up for the municipality's unwillingness to extend services to the original inhabitants of the city, which was occupied in 1967.

Although he conceded that this amount ($40 million) is very low in comparison with needs estimated at $ 1.3 billion, it is very important that Arab inhabitants of Al Quds feel that they are not isolated and that Arabs and Muslims are supporting their cause.

Regarding countries' contribution to the fund, the diplomat explained that the late king Hassan II who had drafted the statutes of the agency had left the door open for voluntary contributions in order to spur competition.

He added that the late king had ordered the opening of a bank account to receive contributions of Moroccan citizens.

Morocco had donated over USD 100,000 to Bayt Mal Al-Quds which is headquartered in Casablanca.

Previous Stories:
  Administrative board of Bayt Mal al-Quds agency convenes in Morocco next week   (2/10/2000)
  Morocco approves headquarters agreement with Jerusalem fund   (7/9/1999)
  Palestinian official describes as positive and needed the trip of Moroccan pilgrims to Jerusalem   (3/11/1999)

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