• Military

• WMD Menu                           

• Introduction
• Systems
• Facilities
• Agencies
• Operations
• Countries
• Hot Documents
• News
• Reports
• Policy
• Budget
• Congress
• Links

• Intelligence
• Homeland Security
• Space

Iran calls for emergency OIC summit to discuss Iraq crisis

IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency

Tehran, Aug 20, IRNA -- President Mohammad Khatami here on Friday 
called on member countries of the Organization of the Islamic 
Conference (OIC) to meet in an emergency summit to try to find 
solutions to the deepening Iraqi crisis. 
Khatami told the current OIC Chairman Abdullah Ahmad Badawi over 
phone that the Iraqi interim government is in a difficult situation 
vis-a-vis the crisis in the holy city of Najaf, and stressed that 
immediate action must be taken to end the escalating violence in that 
city. 
He said the Muslim world and regional countries are gravely 
concerned with the deterioration in conditions in Iraq. 
"What is happening in Iraq is a spiritual and human catastrophe 
and immediate action must be taken to stop the spread of the 
catastrophe, particularly in Najaf," Khatami told Badawi, who is also 
Malaysia`s prime minister. 
"Tehran has always called for security and stability to be 
restored to Iraq so that this country can enjoy the status it 
deserves." 
The Iranian president expressed regret that fighting continues 
in Najaf and that US troops are continuing to bombard the holy shrine 
of Imam Ali (AS) inspite of the fact that residents of the city 
have expressed their desire for peace and have announced they will 
accept the conditions for a ceasefire. 
"Allowing these conditions to continue and keeping silent in the 
face of these events will create grater problems for us," Khatami 
warned. 
"The interim Iraqi government is now in a difficult stage...A 
peaceful resolution of the crisis would have increased the people`s 
trust in the interim government but this never happened." 
Khatami expressed the hope Badawi would get in touch as soon as 
he can with OIC leaders and set the stage for measures to be adopted 
to help defuse the crisis. 
Badawi, for his part, said Iran and Malaysia share common 
viewpoints on the issue of Iraq, adding that he would try to discuss 
the current situation in the violence-rocked country with OIC 
leaders. 
Highlighted the urgency of finding a solution to avert the 
catastrophe in Najaf, he stressed that the OIC will use all means 
available to stop the massacre at and destruction of the holy shrine 
of Imam Ali (AS). 
Khatami`s call for an emergency summit of the OIC to discuss the 
Iraq issue follows a similar move of Foreign Minister Kamal Kharrazi 
who, on Wednesday, called on Iraq`s neighbors to convene an emergency 
meeting to discuss the current situation in Iraq. 
2330/2321/1432