NEW DELHI, Sept 20 (NNN-Bernama) — Pakistan raised its concern about the rise of Islamophobia during a meeting of the Contact Group on Muslims in Europe of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC).
The meeting was held in New York on Monday on the request of Turkiye on the sidelines of the 77th United Nations General Assembly Session.
Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari said Islamophobia has now become endemic in several countries across the globe, according to a Foreign Ministry statement.
The meeting, chaired by OIC Secretary-General Hissein Brahim Taha, expressed deep concern over the worrying rise of anti-Muslim sentiment, hate speech and right-wing extremism.
Taking part in a separate OIC meeting on Palestine, the Pakistan foreign minister raised the issue of Israel’s murder of Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh in May this year.
Bilawal condemned the continued killings of Palestinian civilians, destruction of homes and desecration of the Al Aqsa Mosque by the Israelis, Pakistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said.
