By Ibrahim Khazin
ISTANBUL (AA) - The United Arab Emirates (UAE) issued a statement Thursday condemning Israeli calls for the displacement of the residents of Gaza and demanded an end to the war in the Palestinian enclave.
“The United Arab Emirates strongly condemns the extremist statements of the Israeli Ministers of Finance and National Security calling for the displacement of Palestinians outside Gaza, reoccupation of the (Gaza) Strip, and the construction of settlements in it,” said the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, referring to Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir.
It emphasized “the UAE's categorical rejection of these offensive statements and all practices and procedures carried out in contravention of resolutions on international legitimacy, which threaten further escalation and instability in the region.”
The ministry also called for an “urgent humanitarian cease-fire to end the bloodshed and to facilitate the immediate, safe, sustainable and unhindered delivery of relief and humanitarian aid, particularly to the most vulnerable groups, including the sick, children, the elderly and women.”
It further urged “the international community to intensify efforts to reach an immediate cease-fire to avoid further loss of life, prevent fueling the situation in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, and to advance all efforts to achieve a comprehensive and just peace while preventing a regional spill-over that risks further violence, tension and instability.”
Israel has launched relentless air and ground attacks on the Gaza Strip since a cross-border attack by the Palestinian resistance group Hamas on Oct. 7.
At least 22,438 Palestinians have since been killed and 57,614 others injured, according to Gaza’s health authorities, while nearly 1,200 Israelis are believed to have been killed in the Hamas attack.
The onslaught has left Gaza in ruins, with 60% of the enclave's infrastructure damaged or destroyed and nearly 2 million residents displaced amid acute shortages of food, clean water and medicine.
*Writing by Rania Abu Shamala