The third general assembly of the International Union of Muslim Scholars (IUMS) was launched Tuesday night at the Grand Cevahir Congress Center in İstanbul, bringing together more than 500 Islamic scholars. Hosted by the Union of NGOs of the Islamic World (UNIW), scholars thanked Turkish society and the Turkish government for their stance on the Gaza blockade and the events following the recent Israeli attack on the Freedom Flotilla, on the first night of the assembly.The inauguration session started with a speech from IUMS Vice President Dr. Ali al-Quradaghi in which he drew attention to a new sense of solidarity among Muslim people in the world, stating that “finally the hearts and minds of Muslims are coming together today. The Freedom Flotilla and the proud stance of Turkish President Abdullah Gül and Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan against the Israeli attacks are the examples of this.” In his welcoming speech, UNIW General Secretary Necmi Sadıkoğlu said he was happy to be hosting such an assembly in İstanbul and underlined the importance of scholars for the Muslim World: “We believe that our scholars will be guides for us in this meeting and that they will announce this message with a strong voice in İstanbul, one of the most important cities of the Muslim world.” Sadıkoğlu also drew attention to the recent terrorist attacks by the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) in Turkey, stressing, “These attacks are provocations resulting from the continual stability in the region, and these events should unite us more.” Also speaking at the event, Bülent Yıldırım, head of the Humanitarian Aid Foundation (İHH), which was one of the organizers of the Freedom Flotilla, emphasized the importance of Muslim scholars coming together, “especially the courageous ones.” Recounting the events that happened on the boat during the attack, Yıldırım stated that the freedom of Gaza and Palestine is no longer that far off .
Independent Industrialists and Businessmen’s Association (MÜSAİD) head Ömer Cihad Vardan thanked the UNIW for their recent call for increased consumption of Turkish goods in the Muslim world and their support for tourism and investments in Turkey.IUMS Chairman al-Qaradawi also highlighted the importance of using Turkish goods and investing in Turkey, saying, “We are not guests here; we are among our own brothers and sisters,” adding how fond he is of İstanbul. “This city was once the base for the most powerful army in the world,” he said, announcing that the fourth assembly of the IUMS will also be in İstanbul just like the second and the third ones. Qaradawi also mentioned that Islamic scholars will support the Palestinian cause by being on the next boat that will be sent to Gaza from Turkey. “It is very important to go to Gaza not just with boats but also from land. Because of this we will be supporting the Gazan people from both ways. The Rafah border is extremely important, and we request that Egypt keep this door open all the time,” he said. Prime Minister Erdoğan and several other Turkish ministers also sent messages to the event urging unity and solidarity during the assembly.
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