Jordan warns of Gaza war expansion amid Israeli onslaught

By Laith Junaidi

AMMAN, Jordan (AA) – Jordan warned Sunday that continuing the Israeli war on the Gaza Strip during the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan risks an expansion of the conflict in the region.

Ramadan, the holiest month in the Islamic calendar, is scheduled to start on March 11.

“Continuing the aggression in these circumstances as Ramadan approaches will place the entire region at the risk of an explosion,” Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi told a joint press conference in Amman with his Bulgarian counterpart Mariya Gabriel.

"Every day passes with the war going unabated increases the risk of explosion and mounts its casualties,” he added.

The Bulgarian foreign minister, for her part, voiced concern about the humanitarian conditions in the Gaza Strip.

“Jordan has proven itself as a peacemaker in the region and we support its efforts,” she said.

Israel has pounded the Gaza Strip since an Oct. 7 cross-border attack by the Palestinian group Hamas. The ensuing Israeli bombardment has killed more than 29,960 people and caused mass destruction and shortages of necessities, while nearly 1,200 Israelis are believed to have been killed in the Hamas attack.

The Israeli war on Gaza has pushed 85% of the territory'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. An interim ruling in January 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