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Live blog: Israel’s war on Gaza won’t lead to peace or submission — Türkiye
Israel’s brutal war on Gaza — now in its 110th day — has killed at least 25,490 Palestinians, mostly women and children, and wounded 63,354, local authorities say, as heavy Israeli strikes in southern Gaza prompt another Palestinian exodus.
“Gaza used to be an open prison. Now, it is a battleground where the Israeli Prime Minister [Benjamin Netanyahu] orders military operations for killing civilians to extend his political life,” Turkish FM Hakan Fidan tells a UNSC meeting on Gaza. / Photo: AA
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“Gaza used to be an open prison. Now, it is a battleground where the Israeli Prime Minister [Benjamin Netanyahu] orders military operations for killing civilians to extend his political life,” Turkish FM Hakan Fidan tells a UNSC meeting on Gaza. / Photo: AA
Wednesday, January 24, 2024
2213 GMT — Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan has slammed the international community for not stopping the war on besieged Gaza and voiced concern about the spillover effect of the war to the region.
“One hundred and nine days into the conflict, it is a shame that the international community is still unable to stop the bloodshed in Gaza and the West Bank. Gaza used to be an open prison. Now, it is a battleground where the Israeli Prime Minister [Benjamin Netanyahu] runs military operations for killing civilians to extend his political life,” Fidan told a UN Security Council meeting on the situation in the Middle East, including the Palestinian question.
“The argument that the current war is about providing security for Israel is far from being convincing. Yet, the proponents of this argument never talk about the security of the Palestinians nor Palestine’s right to self-defence,” said Fidan.
Stressing that Israel “commits serious war crimes,” Fidan said those responsible must be held accountable to restore faith in international law and the rules-based order. Fidan stressed the need to avoid the geographical escalation of the war.
“Türkiye consistently warned about the risks of spill-over. Now, today, that risk has become a reality. Recent incidents in the Red Sea, Yemen, Lebanon, Iraq, Syria, Iran and Pakistan are very, very alarming. This escalation has the potential to turn into a geostrategic vortex, from which no one can easily escape,” he said.
The minister urged Israel and its supporters to seek a diplomatic solution while it is still achievable. “The ongoing war in Gaza and beyond cannot lead to peace nor to submission. We have a historical responsibility to stop this war,” said Fidan.
“The future of Gaza is up to the Palestinians and Palestinians only. The only ‘day-after’ question that needs our attention is how we will be able to safeguard a just and lasting peace based on the two-state solution on 1967 borders,” he said.
AA
Fidan stresses the need to avoid the geographical escalation of the war.
More updates 👇
0148 GMT — UNDC member states continue to press for ceasefire
UN Security Council member states have continued to call for a ceasefire in besieged Gaza at a meeting on the situation in the Middle East, including the Israel-Palestine conflict rooted in Israel’s decades-old occupation of Palestinian lands.
Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Türkiye, the United Arab Emirates, Slovenia, Mozambique, Indonesia, and China all called for a ceasefire during the meeting.
Jordan’s Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Affairs Minister Ayman Safadi said, “The clock is ticking” and “Stop the massacre”. Saudi Arabia’s Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs, Waleed El Khereiji, said the priority was to alleviate the suffering and bring an end to the crisis in Palestine.
Lana Zaki Nusseibeh, Permanent Representative of the United Arab Emirates to the United Nations, said the scale of suffering in besieged Gaza competes with the darkest periods of history.
Slovenia’s Foreign and European Affairs Minister Tanja Fajon also called for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, saying: “Only a ceasefire in Gaza and in the region will bring protection of civilians.”
Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi also demanded an immediate and permanent ceasefire, which would be a “game-changer for everything,” and China’s UN Ambassador Zhang Jun reiterated that an immediate ceasefire must be considered the priority.
2222 GMT — Gaza protesters repeatedly interrupt Biden abortion speech
Protesters chanting slogans against Israel’s brutal war in besieged Gaza have repeatedly interrupted US President Joe Biden during an election campaign event to promote abortion rights.
Demonstrators held up a Palestinian flag and shouted around eight times during the speech in Manassas, Virginia, where Biden addressed an audience gathered to show their support in the next presidential elections.
2210 GMT — France says ‘full international community must be mobilised to rebuild Gaza’
French Foreign Minister Stephane Sejourne has urged the international community to come together and contribute to the reconstruction of besieged Gaza.
Speaking at a UN Security Council meeting on Gaza, Sejourne described the situation in the Palestinian enclave as “tragic” and said “the full international community must be mobilised to rebuild Gaza.”
“In light of what has been played out between Israelis and Palestinians, there are two options for this council,” he said, citing those who choose division and those who choose to invade their neighbour, such as Ukraine, in the Middle East, and seek division rather than unity.
“I, for my part, will make a different choice by saying two things: we can, we must stand alongside both Israelis and Palestinians. And we can, and we must say difficult things to both sides,” said Sejourne.
“France is a friend of Israel, just as it is a friend of the Palestinian people. Hence, I must say to Israel, which understands the friendship of the French people, that there must be a Palestinian state, and that violence towards the Palestinian people, particularly that committed by extremist settlers, must end, and that international law applies to everyone.”
2138 GMT — One-month Gaza truce focus of intensive talks — Reuters
Israel and Palestinian resistance group Hamas broadly agree in principle that an exchange of Israeli captives for Palestinian prisoners could take place during a month-long ceasefire, but the framework plan is being held up by the two sides’ differences over how to bring a permanent end to the Gaza war, three sources told Reuters news agency.
Intense mediation efforts led by Qatar and Egypt in recent weeks have focused on a phased approach to release different categories of Israeli hostages — starting with civilians and ending with soldiers — in return for a break in hostilities, the release of Palestinian prisoners and more aid to Gaza.
The latest round of shuttle diplomacy started on December 28 and has narrowed disagreements about the length of an initial ceasefire to around 30 days, after Hamas had first proposed a pause of several months, said one of the sources, an official briefed on the negotiations.
However, Hamas has since refused to move forward with the plans until the future conditions of a permanent ceasefire are agreed, according to six sources. Most of the sources consulted for this story requested anonymity in order to speak freely about sensitive matters.
While Israel has sought to negotiate one stage at a time, Hamas is seeking “a package deal” that agrees a permanent ceasefire before hostages are released during the initial phase, said one of the sources, a Palestinian official close to the mediation efforts. Israel and Hamas are speaking through the mediators, not talking directly.
For our live updates from Monday, January 23, click here.
SOURCE: TRTWORLD AND AGENCIES
