JEDDAH, 26 July 2006 — The Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) has launched a major humanitarian drive to help the victims of the “brutal and inhumane” Israeli aggression in Lebanon and Palestine by establishing a humanitarian forum of various Middle Eastern bodies.
The Jeddah Chamber of Commerce and Industry (JCCI) has also called on Saudi businessmen to donate money as part of a relief campaign being coordinated by the chamber in cooperation with the Lebanese Consulate in Jeddah and the Saudi Red Crescent.
Ambassador Atta Mannan Bakheet, the assistant secretary general for international cooperation and spokesman for the OIC, announced the launch of the OIC initiative at a press conference here yesterday.
“The brutal and inhuman assault in Lebanon has resulted in a catastrophic humanitarian disaster. Despite continuous calls by the international community, Israel is persisting in its aggression and hampering delivery of assistance to innocent victims,” said Bakheet.
He explained that the humanitarian forum is an alliance of the OIC, the Islamic Development Bank (IDB) and the Islamic Chambers of Commerce and Industry (ICCI) to raise money for a large-scale humanitarian campaign.
Bakheet added that OIC Secretary-General Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu has started wide-ranging efforts to extend urgent assistance to Lebanon.
He noted that some countries, such as Saudi Arabia and the UAE, have started sending aid. The ICCI has also begun contacts with the member countries for the purpose of fund raising.
Aid that will be delivered includes medicine, clothes, food, education, and other public services in Lebanon and Palestine.
While admitting that there were obstacles in aid distribution, Bakheet said that a meeting will be held in Istanbul next week to develop a strategy on how “to move on the ground” for delivering medicine, food, and clothes in Lebanon and Palestine.
Saud Dahlawi of ICCI said that there were many problems in delivering aid to the Lebanese and Palestinian people who are under constant Israeli barrage. He said ICCI was working with 57 chambers in the Muslim world. He called on the people to donate generously.
Bakheet explained that the OIC was focusing on the humanitarian side but political efforts were also continuing. He did not rule out the possibility of convening an extraordinary session of OIC foreign ministers.
“We are pressing for an immediate cessation of hostilities in Lebanon and Palestine. This is a must for a comprehensive political settlement in the region,” Bakheet said.
He said emphatically that it is not a war on terrorism as Israel claims. “Killing innocent civilians cannot be called as a war on terror. Israel has to follow all the UN resolutions,” he added.
Bakheet said the United States was following a policy of double standards. “The OIC has spoken many times on this issue. Israel needs to implement all the resolutions of the United Nations without any exception,” he added.
Bakheet said that Lebanon is a sovereign country and a member of the Arab League, the United Nations and the international community. “We are looking for a cease-fire and a comprehensive diplomatic solution,” he said.
Toward the close of the media meeting, it was announced that OIC personnel are to donate five percent of their July salary for the fund to help Lebanese and Palestinian victims.
With regards to the JCCI relief program, Lebanese Deputy Consul-General Ahmad Husain Suwaidan met with Saleh Al-Turki, the chairman of the JCCI board of directors, in Jeddah yesterday. The meeting was also attended by Khaled Salem Al-Habshi, the general director of the Saudi Red Crescent in the Makkah Region.
Saleh Al-Turki said the JCCI was cooperating with the higher authority and had contacted businessmen to inform them that the Jeddah International Exhibition Center was ready to take donations from today.
Organizers say that donations will be shipped to Lebanon in up to eight containers. Food and medicine with a minimum of a six-month expiry date will also be accepted. “The chamber has geared up all its resources for this humanitarian call,” said Saleh Al-Turki.
The JCCI mentioned that 40 of their employees would be on hand at the exhibition center to take donations from businessmen and also ordinary members of the public. The exhibition center has also set up a female section, established by the Khadija bint Khuwailed Center, to take donations from businesswomen.
Eleven supermarkets in Jeddah have also agreed to place advertisements in their premises calling on customers to buy and donate goods as part of the relief effort.
