Sectarianism divides Muslim community, says Turkish FM

ISTANBUL – Anadolu Agency

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Sectarianism divides the Muslim community, said Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu, adding that the Islamic community could not “stay silent.”

Speaking at the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) Foreign Ministers Council Meeting on April 12 in Istanbul, which is a preparatory event for the 13th OIC summit that will take place on April 14 and 15, Çavuşoğlu said sectarianism harmed the Muslim community the most.

“Fighting among brothers leads to big sorrows. Sectarianism divides our Muslim community. Civil wars and armed clashes threaten our peace and tranquility. Terrorism and radical trends target our stability. As a result, Muslims are the ones that experience the biggest harm,” said Çavuşoğlu in Istanbul on April 12. “We cannot accept this situation. We cannot stay silent in front of such a picture,” he added. 

The OIC, which was established in 1969 with the aim of ensuring to safeguard and protect the interests of the Muslim world in the spirit of promoting international peace among various people of the world, has 56 members and five non-member observer states.

With the summit in Istanbul, Turkey has taken over the presidency of the OIC for the following two years. 

Çavuşoğlu said the whole world needed justice and peace, and the Islamic world needed unity and solidarity the most, adding that that was the reason why they had chosen “Unity and Solidarity for Justice and Peace” as the main theme of the OIC summit this year. 

Speaking at the council meeting on April 12, Secretary General of OIC Iyad Ameen Madani said one of the most important issues of the summit was the Palestine issue. 

“There needs to be taken an important step for the once again continuation of the peace process in the international arena,” said Madani, adding that a meeting for this purpose had been organized in Jakarta in the past weeks. 

“We need to rearrange the image of this case and bring it to the forefront,” he added.