Pan-Islamic organization terms Jerusalem committee meeting as timely

The Organization of Islamic Conference (OIC) termed as "timely" the upcoming meeting of the Jerusalem Committee, due on July 29-30 in Morocco, under the chairmanship of King Hassan II.

The meeting, which takes place 16 months after the Middle-East peace process came to a deadlock, will adopt resolutions renewing the "firm positions of the Islamic countries" regarding the Jerusalem issue, OIC assistant secretary-general for Jerusalem and Palestine affairs, Abdelaziz Abu Ghouch, told Egyptian "Al-Ahram" daily.

The Moroccan Foreign Ministry announced recently that the Jerusalem Committee will meet on July 29-30 in Casablanca under the chairmanship of King Hassan II. The meeting will be attended by President Yasser Arafat of Palestine.

The Committee, an off-shoot of the OIC, seeks "to establish a global plan for the liberation" of Jerusalem and the preservation of the cultural and religious heritage of the city.

The meeting will be held, as usual, at the level of the foreign ministers of the 16 member countries.

The meeting will examine "the dangerous situation in the city of Jerusalem Acharif following the Israeli government decision to expand the limits of the municipality of the holy city with a view to modifying its political status."

The Jerusalem Committee gathers Morocco as chairman, in addition to Palestine, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Syria, Iraq, Lebanon, Jordan, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Indonesia, Senegal, Guinea, Niger and Mauritania.