RIYADH, 22 October — Information ministers of the Gulf states said yesterday that they will discuss the media’s role in combating terrorism at a meeting in Bahrain this week, as well as damage to the image of Muslims following the Sept. 11 attacks in the United States.
The ministers of the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) will review “a working paper (drafted by) Saudi Information Ministry on the role of the media in fighting terrorism,” GCC Secretary-General Jamil Al-Hujailan said in a statement.
He said the media have an “influential role, whether (they choose to play it) negatively or positively” amid the US-led retaliation against Afghanistan over the hijacked airliner attacks on New York and Washington.
The one-day meeting, to be held in the Bahraini capital of Manama on Wednesday, will also discuss the image of Muslims and Arabs in the world following the terror attacks.
“The image of Muslims in general, and Arabs and Gulf citizens in particular, has been greatly distorted; this requires constant efforts to repair some of the damage,” Hujailan said.
However Gulf Arab media still “have a responsibility to articulate the Islamic values and tenets,” the GCC chief added.
