Taleban militia mission arrives for Islamic summit
Taleban militia mission arrives for Islamic summit
ISLAMABAD (AFP): A high-powered mission from Afghanistan's Taleban militia, seeking recognition, arrived in Islamabad yesterday for an Islamic summit, with the Jerusalem problem expected to be a key issue.
Delegates from the Arab world and Asia began to arrive amid a massive security operation here before tomorrow's summit of the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC).
Pakistani foreign ministry officials said 1,500 delegates are expected to arrive for the summit. Around 25 heads of state and government will arrive today.
The Pakistani capital has been spruced up for tomorrow's extraordinary summit of the 54-member OIC, called to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Pakistan's independence.
Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Velayati, among the early arrivals, told state-run Pakistan television he had consulted with Pakistan on key Islamic issues "including Kashmir, Afghanistan and Palestine and different issues".
He did not comment on the presence of the Taleban. Iran is thought to favor the opposition Afghan alliance based in the north of the country, which has not been invited.
The senior fundamentalist Taleban delegation -- which only has observer status here -- is led by the head of Kabul's ruling council Mullah Mohammad Rabbani.
The Afghan seat on the OIC has remained vacant since the Taleban captured the capital Kabul September last year.
Taleban embassy officials said the OIC invitation was a "positive step" for the fundamentalist militia.
The main agenda item for tomorrow's meeting is to discuss "challenges of the 21st century confronting the Moslem Umma (nation)."
But Israel's decision to start work on a new Jewish neighborhood in disputed east Jerusalem in defiance of international criticism will be high on the OIC agenda.
Diplomatic sources said the OIC is likely to call for renewed efforts to defend Jerusalem, where the third most holy site in Islam, the Al-Aqsa mosque, is sited.
The summit comes ahead of a meeting of the OIC's Al-Quds committee -- which takes its name from the Arabic for Jerusalem -- in the Moroccan capital Rabat on March 27 and 28.
Pakistan has pulled out all the stops to tidy up the capital for their Moslem guests.
Roads have been repaired, a conference center built and guest lodgings renovated. Well-polished military vehicles rehearsed on the city's main avenue Friday ahead of the parade that will precede tomorrow's summit meeting.
OIC deputy chief Ibrahim al-Bakr mediated the release Wednesday of two French aid workers, detained by the Taleban in Kabul for 26 days on charges of violating Islamic law.