Islamic countries pledge to confront challenges

Indonesia and other Islamic countries have proposed a special task force to address the challenges they are facing, Indonesian President Joko Widodo said on Wednesday.

Three major issues were discussed at a meeting between representatives from the Organization of Islamic Conference (OIC) countries on the sidelines of the Asian-African Summit, Widodo told reporters.

"The first problem was the Palestine issue, the second was terrorism and radicalism and the third was conflict in a country and inter-country," he said.

The OIC countries pledged to form a special task force or a contact group, which would be assigned to set up the framework of strategies, communications and ways to further implement the matters discussed, he added.

"It was agreed that Islamic countries in OIC approved and gave their full supports to make the existing problems immediately be solved through concrete moves, conducted through concrete steps," the president said.

They also urged the UN to take its role with quick intervention, find solution and swiftly give mandate on conflicts in a nation or inter-nation, he said. "It would be our common commitment."

This year's Asian-African Conference events on April 19-24 gathered leaders and delegates from some 100 Asian and African nations, 15 observer countries and 17 international organizations. Endi