A top Islamic nations group has called an "urgent extraordinary meeting" in Saudi Arabia to discuss the escalating military situation in Gaza.
Saudi Arabia has convened an emergency meeting of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation’s (OIC) foreign ministers to address the "military escalation" and "threat to defenceless civilians in Gaza".
“At the invitation of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, which chairs the current session of the Islamic Summit and the Executive Committee of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), the organisation’s executive committee is convening an urgent open-ended extraordinary meeting at the ministerial level, to address the escalating military situation in Gaza and its environs as well as the deteriorating conditions that endanger the lives of civilians and the overall security and stability of the region,” the OIC said in a statement on its website.
The OIC is the second-largest organisation after the United Nations with a membership of 57 nations spread over four continents. It calls itself "the collective voice of the Muslim world."
Hamas launched a surprise large-scale attack on Israel on October 7 which killed 1,300 people, sparking a retaliatory bombing campaign that has killed at least 2,215 in the Gaza Strip ahead of a potential Israeli ground invasion of the territory.
On Friday, Saudi Arabia denounced the displacement of Palestinians within Gaza and attacks on "defenceless civilians", its strongest language criticising Israel since the war broke out.
(With inputs from agencies)