The sectarian conflict in Syria long ago drove the Sunni-dominated Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) to align itself against Iran and its proxies and allies throughout the Middle East, most prominently the Bashar al-Assad regime in Syria and Hezbollah in Lebanon. Saudi Arabian Foreign Minister Saud al-Faisal last June accused Damascus of conducting “genocide” against largely Sunni rebel forces, and the GCC as a whole has begun to get physical in levying financial restrictions on Hezbollah.

In the aftermath of what is widely suspected to be the use of chemical weapons by the regime against rebel-controlled suburbs of Damascus, Arab states have expanded their diplomacy against the Iranian bloc. The Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), a 57 member state bloc described as “the collective voice of the Muslim world”, on Wednesday called for the international community to act against Syria:

The Organisation of Islamic Cooperation on Wednesday condemned alleged poison gas attacks in Syria, blaming the government and calling for “decisive action” in response… “This attack is a blatant affront to all religious and moral values and a deliberate disregard of international laws and norms, which requires a decisive action,” it said in a statement.

For its part, the GCC had already condemned the attack.

[Photo: Madden / Wiki Commons]