Speeches & Statements

NATIONAL STATEMENT BY

DATO’ SERI UTAMA HAJI MOHAMAD HAJI HASAN

MINISTER OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS, MALAYSIA

AT THE EXTRAORDINARY MEETING OF THE COUNCIL

OF FOREIGN MINISTERS OF THE OIC

25 AUGUST 2025

JEDDAH, SAUDI ARABIA

His Excellency Hissein Brahim Taha,

Secretary-General of the OIC,

His Excellency Hakan Fidan,

Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Turkiye,

Your Highnesses, Excellencies,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Assalamualaikum warahmatullahi wabarakatuh.

1.  On behalf of the Government of Malaysia, I extend my most heartfelt thanks to the Government of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia for being our generous host on the occasion of this important meeting.

2.  Malaysia’s national statement will be brief, and as clear as we have always been on the matter of Gaza.

3.  Reported plans for an Israeli military takeover of Gaza are an outrage. What they are planning now is a bold escalation of their long-held wish to occupy Palestinian lands for good.

4.  This is modern-day colonisation, and an insult to the diplomatic efforts of all.

5.  For the past two years, various powers, including several of our friends here with us today, have tried to mediate the conflict with sincerity. But all attempts for a peaceful resolution, or even for a ceasefire, were negated by Israel’s absolute refusal to comply.

6.  We asked them not to harm civilians. They blew up housing areas, schools, and hospitals.

7.  We asked them to let civilians evacuate to safe areas. They bombarded evacuation zones.

8.  We asked them to let in humanitarian aid. They attacked those bringing supplies, cut off the delivery of aid, and starved all of Gaza.

9.  The UN has officially declared a famine in Gaza. Acute malnutrition, no access to food, and an increasingly high death toll make this a catastrophe in every sense.

10.  Malaysia, like many members of the international community, have done all we can to ease the suffering of the Palestinian people, through UNRWA and other channels. But now we must ask ourselves: Is it possible for anyone to help anymore, when Israel’s obstruction stands in the way every time?

11.  Israel has made it clear that it will never cooperate. And let me be clear: It will not stop. The atrocities committed by its occupying forces, over the past two years, are only the beginning.

12.  Israel’s ambition has always been expansion. We know that “Greater Israel” is not a new concept. It has always been an Israeli national policy, to usurp surrounding land to build settlements, and to violently eliminate anyone standing in the way.

13.  Ladies and gentlemen, one clear lesson has emerged from the violence of the past 80 years. It may have begun with Palestine, but it certainly will not end with Palestine.

14.  Israel is now acting on the knowledge that it can spend two years, slaughtering and starving civilians in Gaza, only for its allies to label it “necessary self-defence.” It will reach further, grabbing land around the region, and intimidating its critics around the globe.

15.  My sisters and brothers, I leave you with this urgent plea. What happens in this world, we will someday answer for. But there is still time for the members of the ummah to save those among us in need.

16.  Someday, when there is an independent Palestinian State, with East Jerusalem as its Capital, we will know that the Islamic peoples around the world made this possible.

17.  But we must continue to raise our voices, every single day, until peace and justice come to Palestine at last.

Thank you.