Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Wednesday, March 05, 2003
OIC Summit Opens to Seek Peaceful Solution to Iraqi Crisis
An emergency summit of the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) opened in Doha Wednesday morning to coordinate a common stance to seek a peaceful solution to the Iraqi crisis.
An emergency summit of the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) opened in Doha Wednesday morning to coordinate a common stance to seek a peaceful solution to the Iraqi crisis.
Fifty-five heads of state and government of 57 OIC member states attended the summit amid increasingly worsening situation in the Gulf region due to a possible war against Iraq by the United States and Britain.
Also present at the summit is the Iraqi delegation led by Vice President Izzat Ibrahim.
The summit, being held at Hotel Ritz-Carlton, is expected to focus on discussion of an initiative put forward by the United Arab Emirates to urge Iraqi President Saddam Hussein to step down in a bid to avoid a US-led war against Iraq.
The summit is seen as a last-ditch effort by the Islamic world to prevent a possible war against Iraq and also a show of solidarity by Islamic states to resolve the Iraqi issue peacefully.
Security is extremely tight with hundreds of troops deployed inand around Hotel Ritz-Carlton and no private vehicles are allowed in the hotel.
More than 200 correspondents across the world are here to cover the event.