The president, who began his visit on Tuesday, told the attendees of the fourth International Islamic Conference of Bait-al-Maqdis that it was not fair that Palestinian children had to grow up without a country of their own. He reaffirmed the Maldives support for the establishment of a Palestinian state saying that the world has let down the Palestinians time and time again. President Waheed also met with his Palestinian counterpart Mahmoud Abbas who awarded him the Star of Palestine, the highest honour awarded by the nation, in appreciation of his contribution to strengthen the fraternal relations between the two countries. The president, meanwhile, conferred the Order of “Nishan Izzuddeen,” the highest ranking honour conferred by the Maldives on a foreign national, on Palestinian President Abbas. President Waheed, the first Maldivian president to visit the occupied Palestinian territories, also visited the Birzeit University and Al-Masjid Al Aqssa.