Jordan calls for permanent cease-fire in Gaza amid Israeli onslaught

By Laith Junaidi

AMMAN, Jordan (AA) – Jordan’s King Abdullah II called Sunday for an immediate and permanent cease-fire in the Gaza Strip amid a deadly Israeli onslaught on the Palestinian territory.

In a phone call with French President Emmanuel Macron, the monarch underlined the need to protect civilians in Gaza and provide adequate humanitarian aid to the besieged enclave, the royal court said in a statement.

“The catastrophic humanitarian conditions in Gaza require immediate action from the international community to limit its exacerbation,” he added.

He also warned of grave consequences from any Israeli ground attack on Rafah, on the southern tip of the Gaza Strip, where more than 1.4 million people have taken refuge from Israel’s ongoing offensive on the strip.

Israel has waged a deadly military offensive on the Gaza Strip since a cross-border attack led by the Palestinian group Hamas in which some 1,200 Israelis were killed.

More than 32,200 Palestinians have since been killed and over 74,500 injured amid mass destruction and shortages of necessities.

The Israeli war has pushed 85% of Gaza’s population into internal displacement amid acute shortages of food, clean water, and medicine, while 60% of the enclave's infrastructure has been damaged or destroyed, according to the UN.

Israel is accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice, which in January issued an interim ruling that ordered Tel Aviv to stop genocidal acts and take measures to guarantee that humanitarian assistance is provided to civilians in Gaza.

*Writing by Ikram Kouachi