Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

Pakistan, Saudi Arabia snub Malaysia's Muslim summit

LEADERS from many Muslim nations including Turkey and Iran gathered in Malaysia on Wednesday (18) to tackle issues agitating Muslims globally at a summit that has been snubbed by Saudi Arabia and its close ally Pakistan.

At a welcome dinner for the guests, Malaysian prime minister Mahathir Mohamad said the Kuala Lumpur Summit would aim to "do something" to improve the lives of Muslims and overcome Islamophobia.


"We need to find a way to address our shortcomings, our dependency on non-Muslims to protect ourselves against the enemies of Islam," said 94-year-old Mahathir, the world's oldest premier and one of its most vocal.

The four-day summit could also discuss mounting outrage over China's camps for Uighur Muslims in Xinjiang - a subject that will doubtless upset Beijing.

Pakistani prime minister Imran Khan, who along with Mahathir and Turkey's president Tayyip Erdogan had been a prime mover behind the summit, made a belated decision to skip the meeting.

Some Pakistani officials, unnamed because they are not authorised to speak to the media, said Khan pulled out under pressure from Saudi Arabia, though media reports say his officials deny that was the reason why the world's second largest Muslim country won't be represented.

Iranian president Hassan Rouhani and Qatar's Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamid Al-Thani, whose countries have tense relations with Saudi Arabia, are attending.

Saudi Arabia said the summit was the wrong forum for matters of importance to the world's 1.75 billion Muslims, though some analysts suspected the Kingdom feared being diplomatically isolated by regional rivals Iran, Qatar and Turkey.

Saudi state news agency SPA reported that on a call with Mahathir on Tuesday (17), Saudi King Salman reaffirmed that such issues should be discussed through the Jeddah-based Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC).

A Saudi source said the country declined to attend because the meeting was not being held under the auspices of the OIC.

The Saudi government's centre for international communication did not respond to a request for comment.

OIC Secretary-General Yousf al-Othaimeen told Sky News Arabia that it was against the interests of the Islamic community to convene meetings outside the aegis of the OIC.

He also said the Kuala Lumpur summit splinters Islamic solidarity and is out of tune.

"Any weakening of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation is a weakening of Islam and Muslims,” he told the broadcaster.

The absence of Saudi Arabia, the birthplace of Islam, whose king also hold the title of Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques in Mecca and Medina, demonstrates some of the divisions in the Muslim world.

"The issue is that you've got blocs," said James Dorsey, a senior fellow at S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies and Middle East Institute in Singapore. "

You've got a Saudi-UAE bloc, Turkey-Qatari bloc, and Pakistan in the middle trying to hedge their bets."

Indonesia, the country with the world's largest Muslim population, would be represented by vice-president Ma'ruf Amin, a cleric overseeing the country's fight against radicalisation and terrorism.

Defending the summit, Mahathir's office issued a statement saying there was no intention to create a "new bloc as alluded to by some of its critics".

"In addition, the Summit is not a platform to discuss about religion or religious affairs but specifically to address the state of affairs of the Muslim Ummah," it said, using the Arabic term for community.

Last week, Mahathir expressed frustration with the OIC's inability to forge a united front and act decisively. The Malaysian leader also raised the possibility that the alleged mistreatment of Muslim Uighurs in China's Xinjiang would be discussed.

Beijing describes the camps where Uighur Muslims are being held as "vocational training centres", while critics say they are mass internment camps.

(Reuters)

More For You

Knife crimes

Knife-enabled crimes include cases where a blade or sharp instrument was used to injure or threaten, including where the weapon was not actually seen.

Getty Images/iStockphoto

Knife crime in London accounts for a third of national total: ONS

KNIFE-RELATED crime in London made up almost a third of all such offences recorded in England and Wales in 2024, with the Metropolitan Police logging 16,789 incidents, according to figures released by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) on Thursday.

This amounts to one offence every 30 minutes in the capital and represents 31 per cent of the 54,587 knife-enabled crimes reported across England and Wales last year. The total number marks a two per cent rise from 53,413 offences in 2023.

Keep ReadingShow less
Starmer and Modi

Starmer and Modi shake hands during a bilateral meeting in the sidelines of the G20 summit at the Museum of Modern Art in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil Brazil, on November 18, 2024.

Getty Images

Starmer calls Modi over Kashmir attack; expresses condolences

PRIME MINISER Keir Starmer spoke to Indian prime minister Narendra Modi on Friday morning following the deadly attack in Kashmir’s Pahalgam region that killed 26 people on Tuesday.

According to a readout from 10 Downing Street, Starmer said he was horrified by the devastating terrorist attack and expressed deep condolences on behalf of the British people to those affected, their loved ones, and the people of India. The two leaders agreed to stay in touch.

Keep ReadingShow less
 Post Office Horizon

A Post Office van parked outside the venue for the Post Office Horizon IT inquiry at Aldwych House on January 11, 2024 in London, England. (Photo: Getty Images)

Getty Images

Post Office spent £600m to keep Horizon despite plans to replace it: Report

THE POST OFFICE has spent more than £600 million of public funds to continue using the Horizon IT system, according to a news report.

Despite deciding over a decade ago to move away from the software, the original 1999 contract with Fujitsu prevented the Post Office from doing so, as it did not own the core software code, a BBC investigation shows.

Keep ReadingShow less
Pahalgam attack: Prayer meet held at Indian mission in London

The prayer meet was led by Indian High Commissioner to the UK Vikram Doraiswami

Pahalgam attack: Prayer meet held at Indian mission in London

Mahesh Liloriya

A PRAYER meet was held at the Gandhi Hall in the High Commission of India in London on Thursday (24) to pay respects to the victims of the Pahalgam terrorist attack.

Chants of ‘Bharat Mata Ki Jai’ rang out at the event which was led by Indian High Commissioner to the UK Vikram Doraiswami.

Keep ReadingShow less
UK  mini heatwave

Sunny conditions will bring early summer warmth

Getty

UK to see mini heatwave as temperatures climb towards 24 °c

The UK is set for a period of warmer weather in the coming days, with temperatures expected to rise significantly across parts of the country. According to the Met Office, a spell of dry and sunny conditions will bring early summer warmth, although it will fall short of the threshold for an official heatwave.

Temperatures in south-eastern and central England could reach 23°c to 24°c by Tuesday, around 10C above the seasonal average for some areas. The Met Office described this as a “very warm spell” rather than a heatwave, though the contrast with recent cooler weather will be noticeable.

Keep ReadingShow less