Palestinians live in 'open prison': Iranian envoy to Türkiye

By Tugba Altun

ANKARA (AA) - Palestinians live in an "open prison" in the Gaza Strip, Iranian Ambassador to Türkiye Mohammad Hassan Habibollahzadeh said Monday.

The blockade of Gaza, the displacement of the Palestinian people and the seizure of their lands have continued for 70 years, Habibollahzadeh told reporters in the capital Ankara.

Israel has refused to end the killing in Gaza, he said, adding: "Preventing the delivery of humanitarian aid to Gaza is nothing but murder and genocide."

Regarding the recent UN Security Council resolution on a Gaza cease-fire, the ambassador said that stopping the war "even for one day" would save lives and Iran would support it.

He added that despite resolutions on Palestine passed in the UN since 1948, Israel is "trying to seize Palestinian lands step by step."

The UN Security Council passed a resolution Monday demanding a cease-fire in Gaza during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, which began on March 11 and is set to end on April 9.

Fourteen council members voted in favor of the resolution presented by 10 elected members of the body while the US abstained.

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

More than 32,333 Palestinians have since been killed and over 74,694 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. 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.

*Written by Diyar Guldogan from Washington, D.C.