Morocco Supports Islamic Military Alliance against Terrorism

Morocco has voiced its firm support to the Islamic Military Counter-Terrorism Coalition (IMCTC) during a meeting held Sunday in Riyadh by top Islamic defense officials.

The Moroccan backing to the IMCTC was expressed by minister delegate in charge of the National Defense Administration Abdellatif Loudiy. He said the North African Kingdom offers to the Islamic alliance its sound experience in the fight against extremism and terrorism to combat extremist organizations.

He also renewed Morocco’s continued solidarity with Saudi Arabia in defending its sovereignty and territorial integrity, affirming that Rabat supports all Saudi measures taken to ensure the country’s security and stability.

At the end of their gathering, the Islamic defense ministers agreed to step up cooperation to cut off the terror groups financing and underlined the importance of social media in combating extremist ideology and propaganda.

In their final statement, the ministers stressed the importance of the military’s role in combating terrorism, enhancing security and peace in the Coalition member countries, and contributing to regional and international security and peace.

They reaffirmed their determination to work with every possible means to confront extremism and terrorism. The defense ministers renewed their determination to address terror threats through education and promote the moderate values of Islam.

The ministers emphasized the importance of draining the sources of terrorist funding and cutting off any financial support to terror operations and activities.

“This can be achieved by coordinating efforts to combat terrorist funding” said the Ministers joint statement, calling for more action to improve compliance with international standards.

According to Gen. Raheel Sharif, a retired Pakistani General who has been appointed commander in-chief of the IMCTC, the greatest challenge to peace and stability in the 21st century, especially in the Islamic world, is to address the terrorist threats.

He stressed the need for Islamic countries to unite and work together to defeat terrorism and its extremist ideology, mobilize and coordinate the use of resources, facilitate the exchange of information and help member countries build their own counter-terrorism capacity.

The Sunday meeting, the coalition’s first,  was held in the wake of the terror attack on a mosque in Egypt’s Sinai that killed over 300 people.

The Islamic Military Counter-Terrorism Coalition made up of 41 Muslim or Muslim-dominated countries across the Middle East, Africa and Asia was set up in 2015.

Saudi Arabia, which pledged to contribute $107 million to the project, will house the Coalition’s future center.