The Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), which represents 57 Muslim states, has censured a report by the Quartet on the Middle East, claiming that the document is biased in Israel’s favor.
The Quartet of Mideast negotiators – the United Nations, US, European Union and Russia – published a report in which it blasted Israel for building in Judea and Samaria and compared such construction to acts of Palestinian terrorism. The Quartet also criticized the Palestinians for their incitement to terrorism.
In a statement released on Saturday, OIC Secretary General Iyad bin Amin Madani described the Quartet report as flawed, saying it “lacks objectivity.”
“The report is not objective while describing Israel’s occupation and its illegal policies which hinder a political solution,” Madani said.
The Quartet report proposed a negotiated two-state solution as the only way to achieve peace in, adding that Israeli construction in Judea and Samaria was “steadily eroding the viability of the two-state solution.”
“This raises legitimate questions about Israel’s long-term intentions, which are compounded by the statements of some Israeli ministers that there should never be a Palestinian state,” the Quartet report added.
Elsewhere in his remarks, the OIC chief urged the Quartet to act as a mediator to halt Israel’s “occupation of the Palestinian lands” and pave the way for the establishment of a Palestinian state.
The central committee of the Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO) in a meeting on Saturday also rejected the Quartet report.
Nabil Abu-Rudina, the committee spokesperson, said the Quartet report did not address the Palestinian demand for an Israeli withdrawal from Judea and Samaria and part of Jerusalem or the banning of Israeli communities in these areas.
“The committee will not settle for less than the legal rights of the Palestinian,” he said.
Instead, the committee endorsed the French initiative, which exempts the Palestinians from direct negotiations with Israel.
By: United with Israel Staff
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