Saudi Arabia calls for special Islamic summit

Saudi Arabia calls for special Islamic summit

Saudi Arabia has called for an extraordinary summit of Muslim leaders next month to address the risks of “sedition” threatening Muslim countries.

King Abdullah has called for “an extraordinary Islamic solidarity meeting to ensure… unity during this delicate time as the Muslim world faces dangers of fragmentation and sedition,” Saudi state news agency quoted Foreign Minister Saud al-Faisal as saying.

King Abdullah wishes to convene the summit in mid-August in a bid at “unifying the ranks” of Muslims, the report said.

No further details concerning the agenda of the meeting were presented.

But the announcement comes amid a spike in deadly violence across Syria, where opposition activists say more than 17,000 people have been killed since an uprising erupted in March 2011 against the regime of President Bashar al-Assad.

Saudi Arabia and the other energy-rich Sunni nations of the Gulf have repeatedly voiced support for Syrian rebels against the Assad government.

In a separate statement, SPA reported that the Saudi monarch has called for launching a campaign to raise funds “in support of our brothers in Syria” starting on Monday.

“The donations will be from all the kingdom’s regions” urging all Saudis “to participate in the campaign”.