OIC issues Istanbul Declaration, condemns Israeli attacks

ISTANBUL

The Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) on June 22 issued the Istanbul Declaration after a ministerial meeting, strongly condemning Israel's recent attacks on Iran, Syria, and Lebanon, and calling on the international community to take immediate deterrent measures.

The statement, released after the 51st session of the OIC Council of Foreign Ministers in Istanbul, described Israel’s actions as violations of international law and breaches of the sovereignty and security of the targeted countries.

The declaration “calls on the international community to take deterrent measures to stop this aggression and make Israel accountable for crimes committed.”

The declaration also announced the formation of an open-ended “Ministerial Contact Group,” which will be tasked with establishing regular contacts with the relevant regional and international parties to support de-escalation efforts, stop the aggression against Iran, and achieve a peaceful settlement.

It stressed the urgent need to stop Israeli attacks while also expressing serious concern about the dangerous escalation, which threatens the region's human, economic, and environmental situation.

In a statement, the OIC General Secretariat described the attacks as a “dangerous escalation that could lead to heightened tensions and threaten regional security, peace, and stability.”

“The General Secretariat—recalling the statement of 13 June 2025, condemning and denouncing the violation of the sovereignty of the Islamic Republic of Iran as well as international laws and conventions—calls for de-escalation and self-restraint and resorting to dialogue and returning to negotiations and peaceful means,” it added.

Fidan says council held 'fruitful consultations'

The Turkish foreign minister said on June 22 that Muslim countries held intensive and productive consultations amid serious regional challenges during the 51st session of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) Council of Foreign Ministers in Istanbul.

“I extend my sincere thanks to my esteemed counterparts and all participants,” Hakan Fidan said in a statement posted on X.

“At a time when our region is going through serious challenges, we, as Muslim countries, engaged in intensive and fruitful consultations,” Fidan added.

Fidan stated that the Istanbul Declaration, adopted during the meeting, amplified the collective voice of the Islamic world on global issues and included 156 resolutions addressing the common concerns of Muslim countries and minorities.

“Over the past two days, our main agenda item has been Israel’s aggressive stance, which poses a threat to regional security and stability,” he said.

Fidan also announced that the OIC has agreed to establish a contact group to address the recent developments in Iran.

He recalled the organization’s founding in 1969 in response to the arson attack on Al-Aqsa Mosque, emphasizing that it remains committed to ending oppression and defending the rights of the Palestinian people.

“We will not allow Israel’s strategy of spreading the conflict across the region to overshadow the genocide taking place in Palestine,” he said.

Fidan underlined the importance of unity among Muslim nations, saying despite differences in language, “our prayers are the same,” and called for solidarity and cooperation to resolve shared problems.

Fidan also met with his Syrian, Yemeni, Iranian, Tunisian, and Iraqi counterparts in Istanbul on June 22.

Hakan Fidan held meetings with Asaad al-Shaibani from Syria, Shaya Zindani from Yemen, Abbas Araghchi from Iran, Mohamed Ali Nafti from Tunisia, and lastly, Fuad Hussein from Iraq, the Turkish Foreign Ministry said on X.

The meetings took place separately on the sidelines of the 51st Session of the Council of Foreign Ministers of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), the statement added.

Draft resolution urges accountability

A draft resolution demanded the immediate cessation of all Israeli acts of aggression against Iran and emphasized that Israel must be held fully accountable for its crimes under international law.

It further called “upon the U.N. Security Council to urgently address this major threat to international peace and security, to take decisive measures under Chapter VII of the U.N. Charter to compel the Israeli regime to immediately end this aggression.”

It also urged “the OIC members of the Security Council to urgently take all necessary measures to secure the adoption of a resolution to compel the Israeli regime to comply with its obligations under international law, including relevant United Nations resolutions.”

The draft resolution reaffirmed Iran’s legitimate right to self-defense, sovereignty, and protection of its citizens.

The violation of Iraqi airspace, which is considered a clear violation of international law principles, has also been condemned, with emphasis placed on Israel's legal and political responsibility for this act of aggression.

It also requested U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres to register this resolution as an official U.N. document and decided to remain actively engaged on the issue.

"Israel attacks on Iran, including repeated military attacks on civilian infrastructure, peaceful nuclear facilities, and the assassination of scientists, senior military commanders, and innocent civilians, including women and children, in grave violation of peremptory norms of international law and principles of the United Nations Charter, including prohibition of threat or use of force against sovereignty and territorial integrity of other States,” it said.

The decision reaffirmed the OIC and its member states’ full solidarity with the Iranian people and government against Israel's aggression.

The OIC document highlighted the provisions of IAEA General Conference resolutions 444, 475, and 533 adopted at its 19th, 31st, and 34th regular sessions, respectively, all of which clearly condemn attacks on nuclear facilities of IAEA Member States.

Israel invited to join Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty

Israel and the U.S. violated International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) resolutions prohibiting attacks on nuclear facilities, the document stated, condemning attacks on the peaceful nuclear facilities at Natanz, Fordo, and Isfahan in this context.

The IAEA was also called upon to firmly condemn these attacks and report them to the U.N. Security Council.

The draft urged Israel to promptly join the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and place all of its nuclear facilities and activities under comprehensive IAEA safeguards.

It declared: “Such barbaric attacks violate international law, including the Geneva Conventions, and seriously threaten regional and international peace and security.”

U.S. President Donald Trump said early June 22 that his forces bombed three Iranian nuclear sites in Fordo, Natanz, and Isfahan.

The U.S. targeted Iran’s nuclear sites with six bunker-buster bombs dropped on the Fordo facility with B-2 stealth bombers, along with dozens of submarine-launched cruise missile strikes on the Natanz and Isfahan facilities.

The attacks came as the latest escalation in a U.S.-backed Israeli military assault on Iran since June 13, prompting Tehran to launch retaliatory attacks on Israel.

Israeli authorities said at least 25 people have been killed and hundreds injured since then in Iranian missile attacks.

Meanwhile, in Iran, 430 people have been killed and more than 3,500 wounded in the Israeli assault, according to the Iranian Health Ministry.