Representatives of Islamic countries meeting in the Malaysian capital, Kuala Lumpur, have failed to agree on a common definition of terrorism. 

The foreign ministers and other officials of the 57-member Organization of the Islamic Conference prepared a declaration Tuesday saying the United Nations is the best place to formulate such a definition. But their declaration rejects any attempt to link Islam and Muslim peoples with terrorism. It also excludes the Palestinian struggle from any definition of terrorism. 

The final declaration is expected to be adopted at the closing session of the meeting on Wednesday. 

Earlier, Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad said his definition of a terrorist would include anyone who attacks civilian targets. But Palestinian and other Middle Eastern delegates opposed that definition, arguing that Palestinian suicide bombers are driven by frustration over what the delegates called Israeli terrorism. 

Some information for this report provided by AFP and AP.

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