From L to R: OIC secretary general, Qatari emir, Malaysian premier and Moroccan king (AFP)

By Kazi Mahmood, IOL South East Asia Correspondent

PUTRAJAYA, Malaysia , October 16 (IslamOnline.net) – Leaders of the Muslim world participating in the 10th summit of the Organization of Islamic Conference (OIC), which kicked off here Thursday, October 16, condemned terrorist acts as well as smear campaigns associating terrorism with Islam.

Malaysian Premier Mahathir Mohamad, who was elected Chairman of the OIC, said Muslim youths should not continue blowing themselves in acts of revenge, adding such acts would only bring trigger reprisal from those targeted.

"Our only reaction is to become more and more angry…so we find some of our people reacting irrationally. They launch there own attacks, killing just about anybody including fellow Muslims to vent their anger and frustration," he told the opening ceremony of the OIC summit.

"Their governments can do nothing to stop them. The enemy retaliates and puts more pressure on the Governments. And the Governments have no choice but to give in," he added.

Echoing a similar position, Qatari Emir Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani, outgoing chairman of the OIC, said Islamic countries support the war against terror but reject attempts to associate it with Islam.

"Terrorism is still one of the gravest challenges facing the world. Our countries have more than once affirmed their rejection of all forms and shapes of terrorism.

"In this respect, we declare our support of, and backing to all measures taken to put an end to this phenomenon, and our resolve to positively contribute to the international efforts to this end," said the Qatari leader.

"At the same time, we reject dealing with double standards with this phenomenon, or relating it to any specific religion or culture," he stressed.

Joining the anti-terrorism chorus, Moroccan King Mohammed VI told the OIC summit that terrorism has been and still is one of the major challenges facing Muslims.

"It has made incursions into a number of Islamic countries with a view to destabilizing them."

Indonesian President Megawati Sukarnoputri also vocalized concerns regarding terrorism, especially that her country is one of the worst hit by a series of bombings that claimed the lives of hundreds of people.

"A number of inhuman acts of terrorism have not only caused loss in human life and property but also have created a false perception about Islam as if it is the religion of violence and aggression," she said.

Bombings outside a nightclub in the Indonesian island of Bali last year killed 202 people, mostly foreign holidaymakers, and another explosion tore through the American-owned JW Marriott Hotel in August, killing 12 people.

Mozambique President Joaquim Chissano, chairman of the African Union, said his nation condemned terrorism and called for a coordinated effort to combat the menace under the auspices of the United Nations.

"We strongly believe that the root causes of terrorism are not and should not be found in any religion. We need to work collectively to identify the root causes of terrorism."

OIC Secretary-General Abdelouahed Belkeziz said "smear campaigns and blatant discrimination" against Muslims in some countries have intensified after the 9-11 attacks on the U.S., which Washington blamed on Al-Qaeda.

"More damaging to the reputation of Islam and Muslims is the upsurge in religious extremism, fanaticism and zealotry, which have been recently associated with violence and terrorism," he said, citing the attacks in Bali, Riyadh and Casablanca.

"The gravity of such extremism and zealotry is greater than the false accusations made and injustices committed against us," Belkeziz said, adding that "this situation requires that we effectively address the causes of such extremism that veers religion off its noble goals."