The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, other kings, presidents, their highnesses, heads of state, prime ministers and leaders of delegations of Islamic countries started in Makkah Tuesday evening the extraordinary Islamic Solidarity Summit at an invitation of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques. The conference is scheduled to last for two days. Following recitation of excerpts of verses of the holy Quran, the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al Saud delivered the following speech: 'In the name of God, most gracious most merciful Prayer and Peace be upon the God's Prophet and his family and all his companions Dear brothers God's Peace, Mercy and Blessing be Upon You From the vicinity of the House of God, the cradle of eternal Islamic message, it gives me a great pleasure to welcome you in your second country, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, wishing Allah Almighty in these blessed nights to help us to tackle the affairs of our Islamic nation and probe the reasons of its weakness and differences that it is incurring and which marred its consistency and unity. Dear Brothers The Islamic nation is currently living in a state of sedition and disunity that led to bloodshed of its people in this holy month in many parts of our Islamic world, ignoring God's verse that 'Persecution is worse than slaughter'. Dear Brothers The ideal solution of all what I have mentioned will not take place except through solidarity, tolerance and moderation and also through standing side by side to face whoever tries to harm our religion and unity. Thus, we could, by God willing, preserve the history, dignity and pride of our Islamic nation at time where only the superpowers are recognized. If we observed justice, then we could conquer injustice, if we practiced moderation, then we conquer extremism and if we reject dispersion, then we could keep our unity, strength and determination, by God willing. Dear Brothers I appeal to you in the name of Allah Almighty that we assume responsibility as much as possible, to become eligible to shoulder it and to observe right as per God's saying 'If ye will help (the cause of) Allah He will help you, and plant your feet firmly'. Emanating from this, I suggest hereby the establishment of a center for dialogue among Islamic sects to come to common terms, in the city of Riyadh as its headquarters and, upon recommendation by the General Secretariat and the Ministerial Council, its members be selected from within the Islamic summit conference. Let me appeal to Allah Almighty to help us stick firmly to our religion and keep the unity and dignity of this nation. God's Peace, Mercy and Blessings be Upon You'. Then, the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al Saud asked the President of the Republic of Senegal Macky Sall, who is the current chairman of the Organization of Islamic cooperation, to deliver his speech. In his speech, President Sall expressed his thanks to and appreciation of the King for the warm welcome and generous hospitality. The Senegalese President also thanked the King for his initiative to call for the Islamic Solidarity Summit after the previous summit held in Makkah and for his great services being provided for pilgrims in Makkah and Madinah, adding, 'We know that the Islamic world is facing great difficulties and crises. We should stand united to resolve these crises and economic problems '. He called for ceasing the killings taking place in Syria and to stand by the Syrian people, as well as stopping the killings of Muslims in different parts of the Muslim world and in Myanmar who are facing a real crisis, and we want to confront international terrorism in the world. The King thanked the President of Senegal for his speech and asked the Secretary General of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), Professor Ihsan Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu, to deliver his speech. Professor Ihsanoglu, who announced that the Organization and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia- the Organization's Headquarters- signed the document of Headquarters Agreement, also announcing the issuance of the directives of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al Saud to build a permanent headquarters of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, as a gift from the King to the Islamic world and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation. He said, 'In the land of revelation and the most sacred place in the world, the leaders of the Islamic world came here in response to your invitation for Extraordinary Islamic Solidarity Summit. More than a billion and half Muslims around the world prayed to Allah Almighty to unite their leaders to overcome the crises, hoping that this summit will be a means to overcome the risks and dangers facing the Muslim world. ' The Secretary General said that the Organization of Islamic Cooperation achieved during the past seven years, many achievements in developmental and economic fields, noting that the Islamic Solidarity Fund for Development and the Islamic Solidarity Fund have finances amounting to One billion US dollars allocated for the programs of alleviating the needs for poverty and infrastructures development. He added that the General Secretariat has made unremitting efforts in the fields of cooperation and political solidarity to defend the just causes of the Member States at political arenas such the support of the Palestinian cause, the defense of the rights of Muslim minorities and communities around the world, the fight against terrorism, and the call for adherence to the principles of moderation and tolerance which characterizes Islam. The King thanked the Secretary General of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation for his speech and asked for holding a closed-door session of the Summit. The delegation of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to the Extraordinary Islamic solidarity Summit included Prince Miteb bin Abdulaziz Al Saud; Crown Prince Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Deputy Premier and Minister of Defense; Prince Khalid Al-Faisal bin Abdulaziz, Governor of Makkah Region; Prince Abdul-Ilah bin Abdulaziz, Advisor to the King; Prince Ahmad bin Abdulaziz, the Minister of Interior; Prince Muqrin bin Abdulaziz, Advisor and Special Envoy of the King; Prince Bandar bin Sultan bin Abdulaziz, Chief of General Intelligence and the Secretary General of National Security Council; and Prince Abdulaziz bin Abdullah bin Abdulaziz, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs. The opening session of the Summit was attended by princes, ministers and senior officials.
