Senior Chinese diplomat and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi stated that Israel’s actions go beyond selfdefense and expressed concern about the escalation of the IsraeliPalestinian conflict. Israel ordered a million people from the northern part of the Gaza Strip to evacuate within 24 hours to prepare for a ground attack.
In a phone call with Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud on Saturday, Wang said China rejects and condemns all actions that harm civilians as they violate basic human conscience and fundamental principles of international law.
Israel’s actions go beyond selfdefense. Israel must listen to the calls of the international community and the Secretary General of the United Nations and avoid collective punishment of the people of Gaza.
Israel prepared for a ground attack on the Hamascontrolled Gaza Strip on Saturday after ordering Palestinians living in the densely populated area to flee south toward the closed border with Egypt.
Israel’s national security adviser also warned Lebanese militant group Hezbollah against starting a war on a second front, threatening to “destruct Lebanon” if it did so, according to the media report.
UN SecretaryGeneral Antonio Guterres warned on Friday (13) that relocating Gazans from the north to the south was “extremely dangerous and in some cases simply impossible.”
China’s foreign minister said all parties should refrain from taking actions that would escalate the situation and instead return to the negotiating table as soon as possible.
China is in active contact with all parties to seek a ceasefire. The immediate priority is to ensure the safety of civilians, quickly open humanitarian rescue channels and meet the basic needs of the people of Gaza.
China sends diplomats to Middle Eastern countries
According to media reports on Sunday, China’s special envoy for Middle Eastern affairs Zhai Jun will visit relevant Middle Eastern countries next week to further strengthen coordination with all parties.
The IsraeliPalestinian conflict continues to escalate. Armed conflict has broken out on the IsraelLebanon and IsraelSyria borders, and the impact on the regional and international community is widening. The international community must remain extremely vigilant and collectively manage and control the situation to prevent it from spiraling out of control.
China has always maintained that force is not a solution. Resorting to violence will only lead to a vicious cycle of retaliation and create further obstacles to a political solution, Zhai noted. And it is important to stop the fire and violence immediately, calm the situation and thus pave the way for a political solution.
Since the beginning of this round of conflict, China has been actively communicating and coordinating with relevant parties. China’s special envoy recently held telephone conversations with foreign ministers and officials from Palestine, Israel, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and other countries.
They all hope to end hostilities, condemn actions that harm civilians and prevent humanitarian disasters. They also hope to restore the Middle East peace process, Zhai revealed.
Chinese in Gaza
There are currently several Chinese nationals in the Gaza Strip, he said. In recent days, our institutions abroad have maintained close contact with them, providing them with security advice and support, helping them relocate to the southern part of the Gaza Strip and encouraging their early evacuation to safe areas.
So far four Chinese nationals have been killed, six are being treated in local hospitals and two are missing in the latest conflict.
With information from the Global Times