JEDDAH, 21 October 2003 — Saudi Arabia yesterday endorsed a unified GCC strategy to fight extremism and terrorism. The strategy, which was earlier approved by the Shoura Council, was adopted by the interior ministers of the six-member Gulf Cooperation Council.
The Council of Ministers also backed a proposal made by Crown Prince Abdullah, deputy premier and commander of the National Guard, at the OIC summit in Malaysia to form a five-member peace committee to resolve conflicts between Muslim countries and between Muslims and others.
The Cabinet meeting in Riyadh, which was chaired by the crown prince, said the Islamic Peace Committee would contribute to settle all existing differences where there was a genuine willingness to resolve them. The meeting also commended Prince Abdullah’s efforts to strengthen Islamic unity by meeting OIC leaders at the summit.
The Cabinet reviewed the outcome of the summit, which addressed the challenges facing the Muslim nation. It expressed its support for the crown prince’s call at the summit to combat extremism and terrorism and said a small group of terrorists must not be allowed to tarnish the image of Islam and Muslims.
In his keynote address to the summit, Prince Abdullah called for a campaign to confront extremism and terrorism and correct wrong concepts about Islam, especially among young men. He also called for empowering the Islamic Jurisprudence Council, an affiliate of the Jeddah-based Organization of the Islamic Conference.
Culture and Information Minister Dr. Fouad Al-Farsy said Prince Abdullah briefed the Cabinet on the outcome of his successful visit to Pakistan, where he held talks with President Pervez Musharraf on major issues and ways of strengthening bilateral cooperation.
The Cabinet meeting denounced the ongoing Israeli military aggression on the Palestinian people and urged all countries to provide the Palestinians with moral and material support to realize their right to establish an independent state with Jerusalem as its capital.
The meeting authorized the foreign minister to hold talks with other countries to sign memorandums of understanding on political consultations between foreign ministries. It also endorsed the labor-related resolutions adopted by GCC leaders.
Shoura Rejects Proposal: The Shoura Council yesterday rejected a proposal to increase attestation fees charged by the Foreign Ministry.
Dr. Hamoud Al-Badr, secretary-general of the consultative body, said the meeting approved the principles that regulate Saudi-Yemen border authorities.
