By Anadolu staff
ANKARA (AA) — The Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) demanded a halt to ongoing Israeli attacks in the blockaded Gaza Strip, the Jeddah-based group said in a statement late Friday.
The demand came in letters sent by OIC Secretary-General Hissein Brahim Taha to members of the UN Security Council, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell, the head of the International Committee of the Red Cross, and the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk.
Taha urged the international community to shoulder its responsibility toward halting the Israeli military "aggression" against Palestinians in Gaza, according to the letter.
The pan-Islamic group demanded urgent humanitarian and relief aid to Gaza and international protection for the Palestinian people "who are subject to a war crime through unprecedented Israeli aggression ... in violation of international law and international humanitarian law."
The Israeli army on Friday widened its air and ground attacks on the Gaza Strip, which has been under relentless airstrikes since a cross-border attack by Palestinian resistance group, Hamas.
The conflict escalated dramatically after Hamas' military wing carried out an unprecedented attack on Israel on Oct. 7 by firing thousands of rockets and sending hundreds of fighters into Israeli towns.
Israel responded with an uninterrupted campaign of air and artillery strikes on the Gaza Strip, and the government announced that it is preparing for a ground offensive to root out Hamas.
More than 8,700 people have been killed in the conflict, including at least 7,326 Palestinians and 1,400 Israelis.
Gaza's 2.3 million residents are grappling with shortages of food, water, and medicine due to Israel’s massive air bombardment and total blockade of the enclave.