By Amin Saikal
When it comes to dealing with two of the biggest current crises in the Muslim world – the devastation of Gaza and the Taliban’s draconian rule in Afghanistan – Arab and Muslim states have been staggeringly ineffective.
Their chief body, the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), in particular, has been strong on rhetoric but very short on serious, tangible action.
The OIC, headquartered in Saudi Arabia, is composed of 57 predominantly Muslim states. It is supposed to act as a representative and consultative body and make decisions and recommendations on the major issues that affect Muslims globally. It calls itself the “collective voice of the Muslim world”.
Yet the body has proved to be toothless in the face of Israel’s relentless assault on Gaza, triggered in response to the Hamas attacks of October 7 2023.
The OIC has equally failed to act against the Taliban’s reign of terror in the name of Islam in ethnically diverse Afghanistan.
Many strong statements
Despite its projection of a united umma (the global Islamic community, as defined in my coauthored book Islam Beyond Borders), the OIC has ignominiously been divided on Gaza and Afghanistan.
True, it has condemned Israel’s Gaza operations. It’s also called for an immediate, unconditional ceasefire and the delivery of humanitarian aid to the starving population of the strip.
It has also rejected any Israeli move to depopulate and annex the enclave, as well as the West Bank. These moves would render the two-state solution to the long-running Israeli–Palestinian conflict essentially defunct.
Further, the OIC has welcomed the recent joint statement by the foreign ministers of 28 countries (including the United Kingdom, many European Union members and Japan) calling for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, as well as France’s decision to recognise the state of Palestine.
The OIC is good at putting out statements. However, this approach hasn’t varied much from that of the wider global community. It is largely verbal, and void of any practical measures.
What the group could do for Gaza
Surely, Muslim states can and should be doing more.
For example, the OIC has failed to persuade Israel’s neighbouring states – Egypt and Jordan, in particular – to open their border crossings to allow humanitarian aid to flow into Gaza, the West Bank or Israel, in defiance of Israeli leaders.
Nor has it been able to compel Egypt, Jordan, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Sudan and Morocco to suspend their relations with the Jewish state until it agrees to a two-state solution.
Further, the OIC has not adopted a call by Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim and the United Nations special rapporteur on Palestinian territories, Francesca Albanese, for Israel to be suspended from the UN.
Nor has it urged its oil-rich Arab members, in particular Saudi Arabia and the UAE, to harness their resources to prompt US President Donald Trump to halt the supply of arms to Israel and pressure Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to end the war.
Stronger action on Afghanistan, too
In a similar vein, the OIC has failed to exert maximum pressure on the ultra-extremist and erstwhile terrorist Taliban government in Afghanistan.
Since sweeping back into power in 2021, the Taliban has ruled in a highly repressive, misogynist and draconian fashion in the name of Islam. This is not practised anywhere else in the Muslim world.
In December 2022, OIC Secretary General Hissein Brahim Taha called for a global campaign to unite Islamic scholars and religious authorities against the Taliban’s decision to ban girls from education.
But this was superseded a month later, when the OIC expressed concern over the Taliban’s “restrictions on women”, but asked the international community not to “interfere in Afghanistan’s internal affairs”. This was warmly welcomed by the Taliban.
In effect, the OIC – and therefore most Muslim countries – have adopted no practical measures to penalise the Taliban for its behaviour.
It has not censured the Taliban nor imposed crippling sanctions on the group. And while no Muslim country has officially recognised the Taliban government (only Russia has), most OIC members have nonetheless engaged with the Taliban at political, economic, financial and trade levels.
Why is it so divided?
There are many reasons for the OIC’s ineffectiveness.
For one, the group is composed of a politically, socially, culturally and economically diverse assortment of members.
But more importantly, it has not functioned as a “bridge builder” by developing a common strategy of purpose and action that can overcome the geopolitical and sectarian differences of its members.
In the current polarised international environment, the rivalry among its member states – and with major global powers such as the United States and China – has rendered the organisation a mere talking shop.
This has allowed extremist governments in both Israel and Afghanistan to act with impunity.
It is time to look at the OIC’s functionality and determine how it can more effectively unite the umma.
This may also be an opportunity for its member states to develop an effective common strategy that could help the cause of peace and stability in the Muslim domain and its relations with the outside world.
Amin Saikal is Emeritus Professor of Middle Eastern and Central Asian Studies at Australian National University and Vice Chancellor’s Strategic Fellow at Victoria University.
Andy Montgomery says
The world does not care or it would cease. We know that and watch a nation and all their descendants perish
God may be on our money but he is not on our side.
Where be the teacher preachers kings popes bishops friends Christian’s buddest suicide hotline hospital police guardian shall they call?
A vru selling them corn which kills a starving man baby child.
You have doomed them all by your inaction.
Your voices have not been heard ye of ancient teachings of the wise
Sleep week for tonite may be ALL our last.
Watch don’t look up for the state of mankind
We’re focused on turkey throat and gold plated trump toilets not issues of the creation like hunger shelter sanctuary peace harmony with all.
crazy Andy
Greg says
From what I have read, the rest of the Muslim nations want nothing to do with the Palestine population.
Jake from state farm says
The title of the article is perfect but the body lacks true accountability. As the humanitarian crisis in Gaza continues to escalate, it’s time to ask some hard questions of those who claim to stand for the rights and dignity of the Palestinian people—starting with the OIC.
Despite the devastation in Gaza, the OIC has failed to hold Hamas accountable for its role in perpetuating this conflict. Hamas’s use of civilian areas for military purposes and its refusal to seek peaceful resolutions have made life unbearable for many in Gaza. Yet, the OIC remains silent—not just about Hamas, but also about its primary backer, Iran, whose funding and weapons fuel the ongoing instability and suffering.
Equally troubling is the lack of criticism toward Egypt and Jordan. Both countries border Gaza. Both have the capacity to offer safe passage or temporary refuge to civilians. Yet both have kept their borders tightly sealed. Palestinians trying to flee war are trapped—not just by Israeli bombardment, but also by the refusal of neighboring Arab states to open their doors.
Where is the outrage from the OIC over this abandonment? Where is the leadership? If the OIC is truly committed to defending Muslim lives and rights, it must speak out against all parties responsible for the suffering in Gaza—including Hamas, Iran, Egypt, and Jordan.
Just more proof that no one gives a shit about the Palestinians and their deaths are nothing but a photo op and the starvation and torture of the Israeli hostages matters to no one.
Silence in the face of injustice—no matter who commits it—is complicity. The people of Gaza deserve better than empty declarations. They deserve honesty, accountability, and action.
don miller says
ot to mention they are probably the organization with the most spare cash. we could rebuild all of europe they only have a strip to worry about. the\y don’t care . the only difference is christian and muslim.