Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak addressed the World Islamic Economic Forum today and spoke of some conflicts happening in the Islamic world, but was silent on the ongoing war in Yemen.

"We have witnessed continued death and destruction in Iraq and Syria, the temporary occupation of Marawi by terrorists linked to Daesh, and a humanitarian tragedy of the highest order in Rakhine State.

"The scale of suffering and strife that has taken place cannot be allowed to go unchecked," Najib told the international audience at the Borneo Convention Centre Kuching.

Najib also said Malaysia had played a major role in helping the Rohingya community and combating the self-styled Islamic State. 

"Following the Asean-US summit which also concluded recently, the nations present committed ourselves to curtailing the threat of terrorism and violent extremism through information sharing and law enforcement cooperation.

"These are measures Malaysia has long called for, and I am pleased that our efforts at fighting Islamic State have been recognised around the world.

"I am firm in my view that we must be relentless in dealing with these challenges.

"As Muslims, we are enjoined to fight injustice and evil, and this is a sacred duty that we are tasked with," he said.

Part of invading force

However, for Kuala Terengganu MP Raja Kamarul Bahrin Raja Ahmad, Najib's speech was yet another attempt to gloss over Malaysia's involvement in the two-year-old Yemeni conflict which has left hundreds of thousands starving or suffering from cholera.

Kamarul Bahrin (photo) told Malaysiakini that there is mounting evidence - from Malaysia's flag present at Saudi-led military coalition press conferences to United Nations reports - that Malaysia was supporting Saudi Arabia in the conflict.

According to a United Nations report earlier this year, military officers from Malaysia, the UK, US and France were spotted at the Saudi-led coalition's headquarters in Riyadh.

He said that although Malaysian troops and weapons may not be in Yemen, there was evidence that the country was supporting a Saudi-led invading force on a sovereign country.

"We know that Yemenis are not only suffering from (the) destruction, but also malnutrition and a cholera outbreak. We are partly responsible as part of the Saudi-led coalition," he said.

While recognising Putrajaya's efforts to help the Rohingya community, Kamarul Bahrin said the scale of destruction and death in Yemen far eclipsed that happening in Myanmar currently.

Helping Israel?

Kamarul Bahrin speculated that Najib's decision to ignore the humanitarian crisis in Yemen was likely due to the premier's personal links with Saudi Arabia.

"Malaysia's commitment to the Saudis is getting to a ridiculous stage, all due to one man's personal relations, leading to our involvement in Yemen," he said.

Now that Israel appears to be open to assisting Saudi Arabia in combating Iran's influence over the Middle East, Kamarul Bahrin asked if Putrajaya would reconsider ties with Saudi Arabia.

"I would like to ask the Malaysian government where do we draw the line now?

"Israel now wants to use Saudi Arabia as a proxy against Iran. Do we want to get involved in this too?" he asked.

During an interview with Saudi-owned website Elaph last Thursday, Israel Defence Force chief of staff Gadi Eisenkot said Israel and Saudi Arabia are in "complete agreement" regarding the Iranian threat.

"Saudi Arabia has never been an enemy of Israel - they never fought us and we never fought them," Eisenkot said.