Waiting on practical steps of Islamic leaders
By Hamidreza Asefi
Former spokesman of Iran’s Foreign Ministry
The Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) held a summit in Riyadh on Saturday to review the situation in Gaza and the crimes of Israel against the Palestinians. The participation of the Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi in the summit shows how much the Islamic Republic of Iran is focused on the Palestinian cause.
Given the depth of the crisis created by the Israeli crimes in Gaza, it seems that the summit was a bit overdue. Of course, to hold a summit at the level of leaders needs a ton of groundwork, which may have been a little time-consuming, but it was still expected to happen much sooner than this.
Israel has proven that it wants nothing to do with any international norms and principles. So, it is not afraid of taking destructive steps such as killing women and children. This will to rampage is of course reliant on the support of Western countries, with the United States and the United Kingdom at the top. If it weren’t for their support, Tel Aviv wouldn’t have dared to commit genocide with such ease.
In contrast to the positions taken by some countries including those in the West, the people around the world did not stand for the Israeli crimes. In recent days, we saw the largest gatherings and demonstrations take place in support of Gazans and stopping the war. These gatherings indicate that the Israeli regime has lost the favor of public opinion in the world.
Israel does not put an end to its crimes despite such widespread protest for two reasons. One, the Israelis suffered a heavy blow from Hamas on October 7, and now they are trying to wreak more havoc and kill people to cover up that tremendous failure. Two, they rely on the support of the US and the UK.
In the meantime, to hold the OIC summit at the level of the heads of state as a show of unity from Islamic countries supporting Palestine is an achievement. However, the summit can be truly effective and game-changing only when it is accompanied by practical steps. Even though issuing a joint statement and making addresses during the summit can fuel anti-Israeli sentiments, it does not alleviate the pain of the people of Gaza.
The Islamic countries have various potentials that can be used to pressure Israel. It is said that more than 70 percent of the crude oil needed by Israel is provided by Islamic countries. A large part of the regime’s trade is with Arab and Islamic countries as well. Therefore, in the Riyadh summit, the leaders of the Islamic countries can go over the methods for utilizing these potentials to put pressure on Israel and reach effective solutions.
Two other items should be put on the summit’s agenda. Recently, a minister of Netanyahu’s cabinet said that using the atomic bomb in Gaza is one of the regime’s options. This confirms that Israel does have nuclear weapons. The international community should be worried that such a bloodthirsty regime possesses nuclear weapons without international oversight.
The Islamic Republic of Iran has for thirty years been advocating for a Middle East nuclear-weapon-free zone. I, for one, hope that the Iranian delegation to the Riyadh summit focuses on the Israeli minister’s threat and puts the nuclear-weapon-free Middle East on the agenda of the summit, too.
The Islamic world has ample opportunities and potential to change the course of the Gaza war if there’s a will to do so among their leaders. There’s an English saying, “Where there’s a will, there’s a way.”
To find a way and help the people of Gaza and Palestine requires a will on the part of the Islamic countries.