VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

VOINews, Jakarta - Indonesian Foreign Affairs Minister Retno Marsudi urged the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) to make all-out efforts to urge the realization of a ceasefire agreement at the earliest between Israel and Palestine.

While speaking at an OIC foreign ministers' extraordinary meeting in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, on Wednesday, Marsudi urged the organization to send a strong message and mobilize international support in handling the worsening conflict situation in Gaza.

"Considering that the UN Security Council is unable to carry out its functions, to get stronger international support, the OIC must urge the UN General Assembly to hold an emergency session," she noted in a copy of her press statement.

Indonesia then called on the OIC to urge all relevant parties to create humanitarian corridors in Gaza and ensure that the international humanitarian law is respected.

This is because Israel's actions of blocking access to electricity, water, and fuel, as well as punishing civilians are deemed contrary to international law.

"Every second matters for Palestinians whose basic rights are threatened. Any effort that leads to the expulsion of the population in Gaza must be rejected," she stressed.

Furthermore, Indonesia called on the OIC to press for the continuation of the Israeli-Palestinian peace process to achieve a two-state solution as the only way to overcome the roots of the conflict.

The minister emphasized that lasting peace will not be achieved without the fulfillment of the rights of Palestinians.

"At the end of the statement, Indonesia reminded that the OIC was founded to liberate the Palestinian people. Now is the time for the OIC to act, and we must act together," she affirmed.

"Indonesia does not want the current situation in Gaza to be used by Israel and other countries to eliminate the issue of Palestine and the rights of Palestinians. Do not let Israel continue its occupation of Palestinian land," she stressed.

The OIC's meeting in Jeddah is deemed crucial to strengthen the unity of OIC's position in handling the situation in Gaza, which is increasingly worrisome and made worse by the latest attack on Al-Ahli Al Arabi Hospital on Tuesday (October 17).

Indonesia has strongly condemned Israeli attacks on civilian facilities, including one that targeted the Al-Ahli Al Arabi Hospital, killing at least 500 victims.

At the OIC meeting, Indonesia also expressed strong condemnation of the aggression against civilians in Gaza and the occupied territories of Palestine.

"Israel's request to vacate 22 hospitals in Gaza is an inhumane act and contrary to international humanitarian law and must be ignored," Marsudi remarked. (Antaranews)