Achi news desk-
Last Updated: March 28, 2024, 08:35 IST
Jaishankar also condemned the terrorist attack that took place on October 7, referring to it as a serious act of terrorism. (Image: PTI)
Jaishankar addresses the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, emphasizing Palestinian rights during his visit to Malaysia
Amid Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Wednesday underlined the rights of Palestinians and the importance of adhering to international humanitarian law.
During his visit to Malaysia, Jaishankar once again described the October 7 attack on Israel as terrorism, but also acknowledged the death of “innocent households” in the ongoing conflict that has seen massive casualties and is set to enter its seventh month.
EAM Jaishankar on Israel’s Palestine issue: “whatever the rights or wrongs, underlining the fact that Palestinians have been denied right, have been denied a homeland” pic.twitter.com/VN3WM66ehk
— Sidhant Sibal (@sidhant) March 27, 2024
‘7 October was terrorism’
“On one hand, what happened on October 7 was terrorism. On the other hand, no one would face the death of innocent civilians,” Jaishankar said during an interaction with the Indian Community in Kuala Lumpur. “Whatever the rights and wrongs, there is a fundamental issue of the rights of the Palestinians and the fact that they have been deprived of their homeland,” he added.
The war began when Hamas launched its unprecedented attack on 7 October which resulted in around 1,160 deaths in Israel, mostly civilians. Hamas also took about 250 hostages. Israel says that, after a cease-fire and an earlier agreement, about 130 prisoners remain in Gaza, including 34 who are presumed dead. Israel’s retaliatory campaign has killed at least 32,490 people in Gaza, most of them women and children, according to the health ministry.
Without naming any country, the foreign affairs minister said, “Countries can be justified in their own mind to respond (to an attack), but every response must take into account something called international humanitarian law.” Condemning the terror attack, minister Jaishankar reiterated India’s long-standing position on the “two-state solution”.
Jaishankar’s comments came as Israeli forces struck Gaza on Wednesday and battled Hamas around several hospitals, despite a UN Security Council call for a ceasefire. Negotiations in Qatar towards a ceasefire and hostage release agreement involving mediators from the United States and Egypt have so far yielded no results, with Israel and the Palestinian militant group blaming each other.
Tensions have risen between Israel and its main ally the United States over dire food shortages in Gaza and the growing number of civilian deaths in the war. The United States also opposes Israel’s plans to push its offensive into the far-southern city of Rafah, crowded with up to 1.5 million people, most of whom have been displaced by the war.
