The Gambia through its Foreign Ministry has highlighted illegal occupation and conflict in Palestine and called for mediation to see an end to the conflict during a mediation conference organised by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in collaboration with the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) General Secretariat in Jeddah.
Representing The Gambia, Kumba Jow, a Principal State Counsel and a Civil and Commercial Mediator from the Ministry of Justice said: “the illegal occupation and conflict in Palestine have been dragging on for many years and we hope and pray that we will one day, through mediation, see the end of it based on justice and fidelity to international law.
“As you all know, the Republic of The Gambia, Chair of the Ad-hoc Ministerial Committee on Human Rights violations against the Rohingya people initiated legal proceedings against Myanmar in a bid to get justice for them. We must say that we wished we were not left with no option but to do so through mediation to amicably resolve the unfortunate circumstances which the Rohingya people are unnecessarily compelled to endure and for them to be brought much quicker back to their homes and rightful country of citizenship,” she added.
“In Africa, we are faced with an alarming rise in humanitarian situations and protracted displacements caused by armed conflict, terrorism, and violent extremism. Our Regional and Continental institutions continue to develop the requisite strategic partnerships and interventions to sustainably address the threats to peace and security.
“Equally, the African Union via its normative frameworks including the African Peace and Security Architecture (APSA) and the African Governance Architecture (AGA) has conceived many programmes to widen the space for mediation and pre-emptive resolution of conflict triggers. We, therefore, encourage the OIC Secretariat to continue to strengthen its collaborative measures with the regional and continental organizations in the African continent, particularly in the context of realizing the peace and security agenda of the continent,” she added.