SARAJEVO
Secretary General of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu on Monday said that "underestimating the Syrian regime's power and potential led to one of the recent years' biggest crisis."
Ihsanoglu spoke at a conference titled "OIC and the Islamic World in the 21st Century" at the Sarajevo University on Monday.
"Everyone thought that the incidents in Syria would resemble those in Tunisia, Egypt and Libya but the developments took place contrary to expectations," Ihsanoglu underlined.
"As the Syrian regime's power and potential were underestimated, we are now going through one of the biggest crisis in recent years," Ihsanoglu noted.
Syrian President Bashar al-Assad must deliver what his people want in the sense of democratic change, Ihsanoglu stated.
Despite promises made to his people, Assad has not fulfilled his promises, Ihsanoglu stressed.
The international community has agreed on what must not happen in Syria but there has not been a consensus on what must be done, Ihsanoglu stated.
"We need to seek a peaceful solution in Syria. A military solution would imply more bloodshed, massacre and destruction," Ihsanoglu said.
-"Jerusalem of the Balkans": Sarajevo-
Ihsanoglu, in his speech, said he was highly pleased to be in "the Jerusalem of the Balkans", Sarajevo, a city where mosques, churches and synagogues co-existed.
"In no place of Europe may you see a mosque and church from the 16th century era other than Sarajevo. There are no such mosques and churches in London or Madrid. You can only see them side by side in Sarajevo and Istanbul," Ihsanoglu noted.
The conference was attended by the Rector of Sarajevo University, Prof. Dr. Muharem Avdispahic and other dignitaries.
