World Muslims urged to do more in fighting global warming

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Wednesday 19 Aug 2015 - 10:28 Makkah mean time-4-11-1436 (File image) Istanbul, (IINA) - A group of Islamic experts urged on Tuesday the world's 1.6 billion Muslims to do more to fight global warming, in a new example of religious efforts to galvanize action before a U.N. climate summit in Paris in December, according to media reports. Muslim experts from 20 nations endorsed a 8-page declaration at talks in Istanbul where it was adopted by 60 participants including the grand muftis of Uganda and Lebanon, a statement said.  The declaration called on rich governments and oil-producing states to lead the way in "phasing out their greenhouse gas emissions as early as possible as and no later than the middle of the century." "Excessive pollution from fossil fuels threatens to destroy the gifts bestowed on us by God, whom we know as Allah - gifts such as a functioning climate, healthy air to breathe, regular seasons, and living oceans," they wrote.  They said inaction on reining in manmade greenhouse gas emissions, from factories, power plants and cars, would mean "dire consequences to the planet earth." The declaration called on rich governments and oil-producing states to lead the way in "phasing out their greenhouse gas emissions as early as possible as and no later than the middle of the century." Din Syamsuddin, chairman of a Muslim organization in Indonesia which has some 30 million members, welcomed Tuesday's declaration. "Let's work together for a better world for our children, and our children's children," he said.  For her part, Christiana Figueres, the head of the U.N. Climate Change Secretariat, said religion was a guide for action. "Islam's teachings, which emphasize the duty of humans as stewards of the earth and the teacher's role as an appointed guide to correct behavior, provide guidance to take the right action on climate change," she said in a statement. SM/IINA