Jeddah (UNA) – With the participation of the Director General of the Union of News Agencies of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (UNA) of the OIC Member States, Mr. Mohammed bin Abdulrab Al-Yami, a session was held today, Monday (December 15, 2025) in Jeddah on “The Role of Media in Promoting Youth Participation in Post-Conflict Societies,” within the framework of the 26th Ordinary Session of the Independent Permanent Human Rights Commission of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, held in Jeddah under the title: “Youth Health in OIC Member States: Challenges and Opportunities from a Human Rights Perspective.”
At the beginning of the session, the General Supervisor of Official Media in the State of Palestine, Minister Ahmed Assaf, stressed that Palestinian youth paid the highest price during the recent Israeli aggression, noting that there are more than 20 martyrs from among university students, which confirms that the occupation is targeting youth.
Assaf noted the role of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and its wise leadership in supporting the Palestinian cause and leading international conferences aimed at recognizing the Palestinian state.
He pointed to the importance of the media’s role in conflict zones, noting that the media can create a positive environment in these areas by promoting dialogue, strengthening the rule of law, urging governments to involve young people in decision-making, and proposing laws and legislation that empower young people at the level of state institutions and their leadership positions.
He stressed that the risk of displacement in the Gaza Strip still exists, noting that the Palestinian government is working to strengthen the resilience of the Palestinian people and their continued presence on their land, emphasizing that the Palestinian people will not migrate from Palestine except to Palestine.
For his part, the Director General of the Union of News Agencies of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, Professor Muhammad bin Abdul Rabbo Al-Yami, explained that the media is the most important tool for influencing the masses, pointing out that the OIC region is home to many conflicts, and it is also home to a third of the world’s youth, which necessitates employing the media in communicating with young people to enhance their role in building the peace and stability of their societies.
In this regard, Al-Yami recommended employing the media to spread narratives of rapprochement and reconciliation, and creating an open space for dialogue with young people about their vision of peace issues.
He also recommended strengthening the role of the media in protecting young people against extremist concepts, which is extremely important given that extremist groups rely on the media, especially new media, to spread their misguided ideas and try to attract young people to their ranks.
He urged the intensification of media content that promotes national belonging among young people and develops their responsibility towards the security and stability of their homelands, in addition to activating the role of the media in monitoring and analyzing the conditions of young people in conflict-affected areas, in order to build and determine the appropriate response to these conditions.
The recommendations also included encouraging young people to appear in the media to talk about their experiences in building and sustaining peace in post-conflict societies, and to provide role models in this field that others can emulate and follow.
Al-Yami stressed that in order to implement these proposals, professional media charters must be adopted that obligate the media to refrain from broadcasting speeches that incite divisions and tensions, referring in this regard to the “Jeddah Charter for Media Responsibility” issued by the Union in cooperation with the Muslim World League.
He also stressed the need to bridge the digital divide in member states to ensure that young people throughout the Islamic world have access to the internet.
Al-Yami noted the sacrifices of Palestinian youth and their great contributions to bringing the Palestinian cause to the world, calling on the media to continue to intensify media coverage of the Palestinian cause to highlight the suffering of Palestinian youth under occupation, and to sustain the media momentum that this cause has gained.
For his part, the Director General of the Diwan at the Islamic Cooperation Youth Forum, Yunus Sonmaz, affirmed that the current generation of Palestinian youth is the generation of peace, and their participation is more important now than ever before, noting that this generation is shaped by digital technology, as the mobile phone may be the only means of communication for young people in Gaza with the world.
He explained that the media allows young people to document their experiences and make their voices heard, while also pointing out some of the dangers that young people face in the digital space, including hate speech and harmful content that leads to the normalization of violence.
Sonmaz called for building “intellectual resilience” among young people, enabling them to think critically and combat media manipulation and misinformation, explaining that this intellectual resilience can be built through media education and necessary guidance via youth organizations.
He reviewed some of the contributions of the Islamic Cooperation Youth Forum in qualifying young people in member states in media and providing them with critical thinking skills, stressing the Forum’s readiness to cooperate with the Independent Permanent Human Rights Commission and other bodies of the Organization in this field.
In his intervention, Dr. Yahya bin Mohammed Abu Mughayth, Head of the Preventive Programs Department in the Intellectual Field at the Islamic Military Counter Terrorism Coalition, explained that the media was called the “fourth estate” in a reflection of its great influence on ideas.
He pointed out that the role of youth in conflicts is two-sided; they may be involved in conflicts for multiple reasons, and they may be victims and affected by conflicts, either directly or indirectly, in terms of the impact of these conflicts on the services provided to them.
Abu Mughayth stressed that in order for the media to play its role, it must be fully aware of the conflicts, their causes, their consequences, and the deviant calls and ideas behind them. Only then can the media create its awareness message.
He stressed that the media will not be effective unless there is active participation from young people, and this requires empowering them and providing them with the necessary skills.
He touched on the role of the Islamic Military Counter Terrorism Coalition in this regard, noting that the coalition includes 43 countries and focuses on coordinating the efforts of countries in the field of combating terrorism, indicating that the coalition has more than 22 initiatives, and that it provides its services according to the needs of the countries.
He pointed out that the environment of conflict creates a fertile ground for security instability and the emergence of intellectual extremism and its groups, noting that the media, on the other hand, strengthens the environment of stability and has a contribution to confronting threats to societies, including conflicts.
Abu Mughayth urged all international organizations to play an active role in promoting youth participation in building post-conflict societies, each organization according to its specialization.
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