Ninth Islamic Summit Opens [Archives:2000/46/Front Page]

DOHA_ The ninth summit of the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) opened here Sunday to discuss a host of issues with an aim to promote Islamic peace and development.
Iranian President Mohammad Khatami, the chairman of the eighth Islamic summit, first addressed the opening session before handing over the chairmanship to Qatari Emir Sheikh Hamad Bin Khalifa Al-Thani.
The three-day summit will discuss and approve 81 resolutions prepared by the preparatory foreign ministerial meeting pertaining to Palestine and Arab-Israeli conflict, and other political, economic, military and cultural issues concerned by the 56 OIC member states.
In his opening address at the OIC summit Iranian President Mohammad Khatami proposed a package solution to the decades-old Mideast conflict and the restoration of peace in the region. President Khatami said the solution required the return of all Palestinian refugees to their own homeland in the occupied territories. He proposed a referendum be held by the Palestinians to determine their own future. Khatami also called for the establishment of a Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital and decision of such an independent state regarding current inhabitants of Palestine.
Khatami chaired the opening of the summit in his capacity of the presidency of the eighth OIC summit held in Tehran three years ago. The three-day summit will discuss, among other things, ways of supporting the Palestinians uprising against Israeli
suppression. Other political, economic, military and cultural issues concerned by the 56 OIC member states would also be discussed.
Coinciding with OIC summit meetings, a huge female popular demonstration took to the streets in Sanaa city expressing solidarity with the Palestinians intifada against the repressive measures and atrocities committed by Zionist entity soldiers against the defenseless Palestinians. Demonstrators have also demanded Moslem leaders to come out with decisive resolutions and recommendations backing up the Palestinians rights and putting an end to Israels massacres. (Xinhua, Agencies)


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