The global war on terrorism will fail if the root causes such as "foreign occupation, injustice and exlusion" are allowed to thrive, Islamic states warned in a draft declaration.
The declaration, a copy of which was obtained by AFP ahead of its formal presentation, is due to be adopted by a meeting of the Organisation of the Islamic Conference (OIC) foreign ministers here Wednesday.
It says the 57-member OIC gathered "to state our collective resolve to combat terrorism and to respond to developments affecting Muslims and Islamic countries in the aftermath of the September 11 attacks" on the United States.
It goes on to "reject any attempt to link Islam and Muslims to terrorism as terrorism has no association with any religion, civilization or nationality".
The draft document excludes the Palestinians, who have recently stepped up suicide bomb attacks in Israel, from any definition of terrorism, drawing on a long-held distinction between liberation fighters and terrorists.
In an obvious reference to Israel, the conference declaration read: "We emphasize the importance of addressing the root causes of international terrorism, convinced that the war against terrorism will not succeed if the environment that breeds terrorism, including foreign occupation, injustice and exclusion is allowed to thrive."
Mahathir had proposed a simple definition of terrorism as "attacks on civilians" in his opening address. He specifically included Palestinian suicide bombers as "terrorists" along with Israeli forces.
Mahathir firmly supports the Palestinians against Israel, but it soon became clear that the conference would not back his definition.
The draft declaration also rejects "any unilateral action taken against any Islamic country under the pretext of combating international terrorism," a clear reference to possible US plans to attack Iraq.
The declaration called for a United Nations conference "to formulate a joint organised response of the international community to terrorism in all its forms and manifestations".
A plan of action says a 13-member ministerial-level OIC committee on international terrorism will be established.
On the sidelines of the meeting, delegates discussed a call by Iraq for Islamic countries to use oil as a weapon to force the US to pressure Israel into withdrawing from Palestinian territory.
Iranian Foreign Minister Kamal Kharazi told a news conference the use of oil power to turn the screws on the US and Israel would depend on a collective decision by Islamic countries.
But OPEC countries poured cold water on the idea, citing problems with oil pricing.
There was also talk of the possibility of a new Arab summit on the Middle East, without specifying a time or place.