Turkey's President urges Jerusalem's recognition as Palestinian capital

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has urged the world to recognise "occupied" East Jerusalem as the "capital of Palestine."

Addressing a summit of the Organisation for Islamic Co-operation (OIC), Erdogan stated, "I am inviting the countries who value international law and fairness to recognise occupied Jerusalem as the capital of Palestine," saying Islamic countries would "never give up" on this demand, the Independent reported.

In addition, Erdogan lashed out at Israel, calling it as a state defined by "occupation" and "terror" and added that the U.S.' decision to recognise the city as Israel's capital was "null and void."

Turkey hosted the 57-member Organization of Islamic Cooperation on Wednesday.

The emergency meeting aimed at forging a unified stance after US President Donald Trump announced his decision to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, reversing decades of US foreign policy.

Jerusalem is considered a sacred place, which is home to Jewish, Christian and Muslim holy sites.

However, it is also a disputed territory, contested by both Israel and Palestine, which sees it as a capital of its future state.