JEDDAH: The Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) has reiterated its political support for Palestine and the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people. These statements were made during the OIC’s participation in a ceremony organized at the UN headquarters in New York to observe a day of solidarity with the Palestinian people, which is marked on Nov. 29 each year. In a statement delivered on his behalf by the permanent representative of the organization to the UN, the OIC secretary-general, Dr. Yousef Al-Othaimeen, pointed out the danger of Israel’s settlement policies, as well as its attempts to alter Jerusalem’s Arab-Islamic-Christian character and demographic status. Al-Othaimeen expressed the OIC’s unwavering support for a call by the Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas to the UN to convene an international peace conference “with full powers and with the participation of all concerned parties.” The conference seeks to end the occupation, and establish the freedom and independence of Palestinian people in the sovereign state of Palestine with East Jerusalem as its capital, established on the 1967 borders. The OIC secretary-general reiterated the call for all UN member states to fulfil their political and legal role in international efforts to end the Israeli occupation of Palestinian territories and achieve the vision of a two-state solution.