On 14 May 2018, the US Administration unlawfully opened its Embassy in Jerusalem, in clear violation of international law and legitimacy and in clear contempt to international community position regarding Jerusalem.

The Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) strongly rejects and condemns in the strongest terms this illegal decision by the US Administration and considers this action as an attack on the historical, legal, natural and national rights of the Palestinian people, which undermines the standing of the United Nations and rule of international law and thus represents an affront to international peace and security; as expressed at the Extraordinary OIC Islamic Summit held in Istanbul on 13thDecember 2017, and also by the international community at the UN General Assembly held on 21 December 2017.

The OIC views such deplorable action by the US Administration as a clear violation of all existing international laws pertaining to the status of Al Quds Al Sharif and Palestine, in particular the United Nations Security Council Resolutions 242 (1967), 252 (1968), 267 (1969), 298 (1971), 338 (1973), 446 (1979), 465 (1980, 476 (1980) 478 (1980), 2334 (2016), United Nations General Assembly resolution A/RES/72/15 (2017).

The OIC determines that the US Administration has contradicted its own commitments and expressed utter disdain and disrespect to Palestinian legitimate rights, and international law and has made very clear that it has no regard for the rights and religious sentiments of the Muslim Umah and concludes that the current US Administration has invalidated its role as a broker in any future peace efforts in Palestine.

The specific status of Al Quds Al Sharif is central to the OIC, to the Muslim Ummah, and to other religions, which therefore requires the protection and preservation of its unique spiritual, religious and cultural dimensions, as foreseen in relevant UN resolutions. Hence, the final status of Al Quds Al Sharif should and must be resolved through negotiations in line with relevant UN Resolutions.

The OIC determines that it will continue its efforts to defend the two-state solution and the right of the Palestinian people to self-determination and statehood by creating positive and irreversible political and legal realities, and lead efforts to formulate a multilateral and credible approach to end the conflict on the basis of international law and relevant United Nations resolutions.

The OIC decides to pursue all available legal, political, and legislative avenues at the national and international levels to confront and stop the Israeli colonial settlement regime in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem and adopt actions to ensure that companies and other actors that choose to benefit from the Israeli colonial regime are deprived of the opportunity of accessing OIC markets.

The OIC calls upon all states to continue to fully implement UNSCRes.476 and 478 of 1980 and in this regard urges all states to refrain from supporting the US decision to recognize Jerusalem as the so-called capital of Israel and not to relocate their diplomatic missions to Al Quds Al-Sharif and stresses that it shall apply political and economic restrictions to countries, officials, parliaments, companies, or individuals who recognize the annexation of Al Quds by Israel, the occupying power, or deal with any measures related to consecration of Israeli colonization of occupied Palestinian territory.

The OIC attaches great importance to a just and comprehensive peace based on the two-state solution with al-Quds al-Sharif as the capital of the State of Palestine, consistent with the internationally recognized terms of reference and the 2002 Arab Peace Initiative adopted by the Extraordinary Islamic Summit in Makkah al-Mukarramah in 2005, OIC Extraordinary Summit in Jakarta in 2016 as well as the OIC Extraordinary Summit held in Istanbul on 13 December 2017 and the UN General Assembly Resolution No. 10/19 dated 21 December 2017.