2026 UN-OIC Conference on the Question of Jerusalem
“Jerusalem: The Frontline of Displacement and Annexation
and the Key to Just and Lasting Peace”
Cairo, Egypt
18 July 2026
The 2026 Conference on the Question of Jerusalem, jointly organized with the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) and the Â鶹APP Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People (CEIRPP), will take place in Cairo, Egypt. The Conference will examine the pressing challenges facing the Palestinian people in occupied East Jerusalem, including displacement, dispossession, and violence, while situating these issues within the broader context of the Occupied Palestinian Territory.
The Conference will underscore the urgency of safeguarding the Holy City, preserving the historic and legal status quo at its Holy Sites, and supporting the rights, presence, and sovereignty of Palestinians in Jerusalem. By bringing together religious leaders, policymakers, and experts, the event will provide a critical platform to reflect on the protection of Jerusalem¡¯s unique multireligious character and its significance as a symbol of coexistence.
Programme
10-11?a.m. OPENING SESSION
Statements by:
- H.E. Amb. Mahmoud Omar, Assistant Minister of Foreign Affairs of Egypt
- H.E.?Amb.?Coly Seck, Chair of the?UN Palestinian Rights Committee
- H.E. Mr. Ashraf Al-Awar, Minister of Jerusalem Affairs of the State of Palestine
- H.E. Mr. Dawas Dawas, Assistant Secretary-General for Palestine and Al-Quds Affairs, Organization of Islamic Cooperation
- H.E. Amb. Fayed Mustafa, Assistant Secretary-General of the League of Arab States and Head of the Palestine and Occupied Arab Territories Sector
- H.E. Ms. Rania A. Al-Mashat, Executive Secretary of the Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia
11?a.m. – 1?p.m. PANEL 1?¨C?Saving the Holy City, Safeguarding the historic status quo at the Holy Sites?
- Dr. Wasfi Al Kailani, Executive Director of the Hashemite Fund for the Restoration of Al-Aqsa Mosque and the Dome of the Rock
- Sheikh Ayman Abdel-Ghani, Deputy to Grand Imam Al-Azhar Al-Sharif
- Bishop William Shomali, General Vicar and Patriarchal?Vicar for?Jerusalem?and Palestine
- Dr.?Atallah Naser, Former reciter of Al-Aqsa Mosque?and Head of Quran Memorization Department of Jerusalem?Awqaf??
- Alkomos Makary Alkomos Tadros, Representative of the Coptic Orthodox Church
1?p.m. – 2?p.m. – Press Conference?
3?p.m. – 5.30?p.m. PANEL 2?¨C?Preserving?Palestinian presence,?rights?and sovereignty in Jerusalem & the OPT in the face of displacement and?illegal?settlement expansion policies
- Ms. Monica?Magaon,?European Union¡¯s Office of the Representative in the West Bank and Gaza Strip?
- Ms. Rania?Elias, Former Director of Yabous Cultural Center, East Jerusalem (via VTC)
- Mr. Khalil Toufakji, Former Director, Orient House &?Head, Civic Coalition for Palestinian Rights in Jerusalem?
- Mr. Fakhri Abu Diab, Representative of Silwan community, East Jerusalem??
- Mr. George Zeidan, Country?Director, Carter Center, East Jerusalem???
- Ms. Lucy Garbett, Executive?Editor of?Jerusalem Quarterly??
5.30-6 p.m.? Closing remarks??
- H.E.?Amb.?Coly Seck, Chair of the?UN Palestinian Rights Committee
- H.E. Min. Riyad Mansour?, Permanent Observer of the State of Palestine to the Â鶹APP? in New York??
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Additional documents:
Letter from Kairos Palestine addressed to the Chair of UN Palestine Committee