Indonesia hosts UN meeting to garner support for Palestine

By Yasin Gungor

ISTANBUL (AA) - Indonesia hosted a meeting of the UN Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People (CEIRPP) on Thursday to bolster support for Palestine.

During the meeting, Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi emphasized the urgent need for an immediate and permanent cease-fire in Gaza, unhindered humanitarian assistance, an end to Israel’s illegal occupation and settlements, and support for Palestine's full membership at the UN, she said on X.

The UN's Indonesia office commended Indonesia's unwavering dedication to the Palestinian cause. It highlighted the role of parliamentary diplomacy in achieving a just and lasting solution to the Palestinian question.

"We had a productive discussion on garnering international support for Palestine and the implementation of the two-state solution through the work of CEIRPP," Marsudi said on X.

Israel, flouting a UN Security Council resolution demanding an immediate cease-fire, has faced international condemnation amid its continued brutal offensive on Gaza since an Oct. 7, 2023 attack by the Palestinian group Hamas.

More than 38,000 Palestinians have since been killed, mostly women and children, and over 87,000 others injured, according to local health authorities.

Over eight months into the Israeli war, vast tracts of Gaza lie in ruins amid a crippling blockade of food, clean water, and medicine.

Israel stands accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice, whose latest ruling ordered it to immediately halt its military operation in the southern city of Rafah, where over a million Palestinians had sought refuge from the war before it was invaded on May 6.