The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has condemned “extremist” calls by Israeli officials for the displacement of Gaza’s citizens and demanded an end to the onslaught on the Palestinian enclave.
In a statement on Thursday, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said “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.”
The statement referred to Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, reports the Anadolu news agency.
The UAE categorically rejects “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.”
GAZA HEALTH MINISTRY: 22,600 Palestinians have been killed, and 57,910 wounded in Israel’s ongoing genocide in Gaza starting on October 7.
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The ministry also called for an “urgent humanitarian ceasefire to end the bloodshed.”
It also called for the facilitation of “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.”
Millions Displaced
The UAE further urged “the international community to intensify efforts to reach an immediate ceasefire to avoid further loss of life.”
It furthermore called for the advancement of “all efforts to achieve a comprehensive and just peace while preventing a regional spill-over that risks further violence, tension and instability.”
According to Gaza’s Ministry of Health, 22,600 Palestinians have been killed, and 57,910 wounded in Israel’s ongoing genocide in Gaza starting on October 7. Palestinian and international estimates say that the majority of those killed and wounded are women and children.
Over 85 percent of Gaza’s population are now refugees in their own land, according to the UN Refugee Agency UNRWA.
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Since October 7, 2023, up to 1.9 million Palestinians (or over 85 percent of the population) have been displaced across the Gaza Strip, some multiple times, according to The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA).
Families are forced to move repeatedly in search of safety, UNRWA said in its latest Situation Report.
As of December 30, 2023, the report stated, “Nearly 1.4 million internally displaced persons (IDPs) are sheltering in 155 UNRWA facilities across all five governorates of the Gaza Strip.”
More than 60% of Gaza’s infrastructure is reportedly damaged or destroyed.
(PC, Anadolu)
