“The Covenant for Jerusalem” Conference to Confront Projects of Liquidation and Genocide

Today, Saturday, the sessions of the “Covenant for Jerusalem” Conference commence, organized by the International Jerusalem Foundation (a national Islamic coalition institution) in partnership with a number of Arab and Islamic bodies, under the slogan “Towards Renewing the Will of the Ummah in Confronting Liquidation and Genocide”, in the city of Istanbul, Turkey.

The conference will continue on Saturday and Sunday, with broad participation from political and scholarly elites, as well as opinion leaders from Palestine and across the Arab and Islamic world.

According to organizers who spoke to Quds Press, the conference is being held at a sensitive time, coming two years after the genocidal war on the Gaza Strip, amid efforts by the occupation to turn genocide into a gateway for liquidating the Palestinian cause and resuming the path of normalization, and in parallel with unprecedented escalation in the West Bank, occupied Jerusalem, and Al-Aqsa Mosque.

The conference aims to “unify the efforts of the Ummah to criminalize genocide and break the siege, stand against plans of forced displacement and annexation of the West Bank, and renew the covenant to protect Al-Aqsa Mosque from the dangers of Judaization.”

Over two days, the conference will discuss several central themes related to the Palestinian cause. The first day is dedicated to examining “population liquidation in Jerusalem,” “the crime of genocide and siege in Gaza,” and “plans of annexation and displacement in the West Bank.”

The second day will focus on “projects of Judaizing Al-Aqsa Mosque,” “the issue of prisoners,” “liquidation of the right of return and UNRWA,” in addition to exploring the dangers of “Greater Israel” and confronting waves of normalization.

At the conclusion of the second day, participants aim to issue the “Covenant for Jerusalem Document,” described as a comprehensive charter affirming the constants of the Ummah and the choice of resistance, according to the conference vision obtained by Quds Press.

The conference will also launch a “global popular initiative to criminalize and prosecute genocide,” as well as an initiative to “criminalize all forms of normalization,” considering it a partnership in aggression against the Palestinian people and the Ummah. It will further issue a scholarly fatwa establishing the religious duty to defend Jerusalem, resist normalization, and oppose alignment with the occupation.

It is noteworthy that the conference is convened in partnership between the International Jerusalem Foundation, the Association of Parliamentarians for Jerusalem (a political and rights coalition), and the Association of Palestinian Scholars (a Palestinian scholarly coalition).

 Mashaal: The nation must protect the resistance project.

  In his keynote address at the opening of the “Covenant for Jerusalem” Conference, Head of Hamas Abroad Khaled Meshaal underscored the urgency of confronting ongoing Israeli policies and reaffirmed the centrality of Palestinian unity and resistance.

Meshaal noted that while the most brutal phase of the genocidal war has subsided, Palestinians continue to endure starvation, siege, closed crossings, blocked humanitarian aid, and collective punishment. He warned that Israeli coercion seeks to impose its agenda on the region, describing this as a grave and immediate threat.

Rejecting any form of external guardianship over Gaza, Meshaal stressed that Palestinians must govern themselves. He emphasized the need to safeguard the resistance project and its weapons, calling them vital to the struggle for freedom.

Meshaal urged urgent action to save the West Bank from Judaization, settlement expansion, and forced displacement, and called for solidarity with the Palestinian people. He highlighted the plight of prisoners and detainees in Israeli jails, insisting that their liberation must remain a priority.

Concluding his remarks, Meshaal declared that victory cannot be achieved without unity and partnership. He extended an appeal to all factions and leaders to ensure that decision‑making is not monopolized, framing this as a collective responsibility for the Palestinian cause.

----------------
Agencies