By Kazi Mahmood, IOL South East Asia Correspondent

KUALA LUMPUR, March 31 (IslamOnline) - Muslim nations under Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) are meeting Monday in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia for the biggest Muslim conference on terrorism since the attacks on the United States on Sept 11.

The three-day meeting of foreign ministers of the OIC aims to situate the role of the Muslim people and Islamic countries in the war against terror.

As a prelude to the meeting, the press has been informed that member countries of the OIC will adopt a resolution in support of Iraq, the target of possible military actions by the U.S. in the ongoing war against terror.

Malaysia’s official news agency Bernama said Sunday 51 countries have confirmed their participation in the meeting.

Foreign Ministry Secretary-General Ahmad Fuzi Abdul Razak described the participation as "very good". He said Saturday "For a special session, this is very encouraging."

He added that 51 countries out of 57-member nations of the OIC had confirmed their participation.

Malaysian Foreign Minister Syed Hamid Albar says the meeting is designed to bring Islamic countries into the mainstream of the global fight against terrorism.

The Malaysian government said earlier it wanted the OIC to meet in order to define terrorism and help the United Nations find a bigger role on the issue.

"A lot of blame and responsibility has been put on the Islamic people and Islamic countries, therefore we should be brought into the mainstream and contribute to the international effort to combat terrorism," Syed Hamid told Agence France-Presse (AFP) ahead of the talks.

Syed Hamid said the meeting was "not intended to be a conference for bashing any countries", but Israel is likely to come under fire for what many Islamic governments call "state terrorism".

Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad of Malaysia, who is due to deliver the opening speech, has urged the U.S. and the UN to condemn Israel for its attacks against the Palestinians.

He said on several occasions that the root cause of terrorism could be found in the conflicts in the Middle East, namely the Israel-Palestine conflict.

Delegates in Kuala Lumpur are likely to echo another resolution at the Arab summit, which rejected any military strike against Iraq and called for a lifting of international sanctions against Baghdad.

US President George W Bush describes Iraq as part of an "axis of evil" with Iran and North Korea, and there is widespread speculation that it could be the next target of the U.S.-led "war on terrorism".

On the other hand, Mahathir has repeatedly said Islam has been unjustly singled out as a source of terrorism, and that the root causes of the phenomenon need to be examined.

Meanwhile, the Indonesian government said Saturday it would support the agenda to address the improper perception, which links Islam with terrorist activities, and reject any suggestion that the global war against terrorism is a religious issue.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Marty Natalegawa said that the agenda to be discussed in the ministerial meeting of the OIC is the main concern of Indonesia.

"We share the same point of view that Islam cannot be associated with terrorists and the world should brush the negative image of Islam aside," Natalegawa told the Jakarta Post.

An Indonesian delegation led by Minister of Justice and Human Rights Yusril Ihza Mahendra will take part in the conference, replacing Minister of Foreign Affairs Hassan Wirayuda, who is accompanying President Megawati Sukarnoputri on her trip to four Asian countries.