Turkey calls on Muslim world to further condemn U.S. Jerusalem decision
Turkey on Sunday called on alliance of Muslim states to do more than condemn US stance on Jerusalem recognition as capital of Israel.
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- Published Date: 12:00 | 10 December 2017
- Modified Date: 02:51 | 10 December 2017
Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) members should go beyond condemnation of U.S. recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital, Deputy Prime Minister Bekir Bozdağ said Sunday.
Speaking to broadcaster Kanal 7, Bozdağ said: "The Palestine question goes beyond the Palestinians, we should not consider it as [a] local [issue]… Palestine and Jerusalem is the common cause of all Muslim countries."
He added: "Turkey has long supported very clear policies on the Palestine-Jerusalem issue and will continue to advocate these loud and clear policies."
The minister repeated President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's remark that the status of Jerusalem was a "red line" for Muslims.
Last week's U.S. recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's "undivided" capital and the announcement that the U.S. Embassy would relocate from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem sparked criticism around the world.
Erdoğan called an extraordinary summit of the OIC to be held in Istanbul on Dec. 13 to discuss the decision.