[1/6]Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi attends a family photo session with Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud, Jordanian Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi, Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry, Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi and Palestinian Foreign Minister. Purchase License Rights Read more
BEIJING, Nov 20 (Portal) – Arab and Muslim ministers called for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza on Monday as their delegation visited Beijing on the first leg of a trip to press for an end to hostilities and provide humanitarian aid to devastated Palestinians enable enclave.
The delegation, which will meet representatives of all five permanent members of the U.N. Security Council, is also putting pressure on the West to reject Israel’s justification of its actions against Palestinians as self-defense.
The officials holding meetings with China’s top diplomat Wang Yi on Monday come from countries including Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Egypt, Indonesia, Palestine and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation.
“We are here to send a clear signal: we must immediately stop the fighting and killings and immediately deliver humanitarian aid to Gaza,” said Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud.
The extraordinary joint Islamic-Arab summit in Riyadh this month also called on the International Criminal Court to investigate “war crimes and crimes against humanity committed by Israel” in the Palestinian territories.
Saudi Arabia has tried to pressure the United States and Israel to end hostilities in Gaza, and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the kingdom’s de facto ruler, rallied Arab and Muslim leaders to reinforce that message.
In comments posted by his ministry on in the Gaza Strip. Unfortunately, there are large countries that provide cover for the current Israeli attacks.”
About 240 hostages were taken during Hamas’ deadly cross-border rampage in Israel on October 7, prompting Israel to invade the Gaza Strip to root out the Islamist militant group.
The Hamas-led government in Gaza said at least 13,000 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli bombings since then, including at least 5,500 children.
Israel’s ambassador to Beijing, Irit Ben-Abba, told foreign reporters at a briefing on Monday that she hoped there would be no statements about a ceasefire during this visit, saying now was not the time.
She said Israel hoped the delegation would talk about the hostages held by Hamas and call for “their immediate release without preconditions,” adding that the parties involved should talk together about Egypt’s “role in facilitating humanitarian assistance.” .
“BROTHER AND FRIEND”
China’s Wang said Beijing is a “good friend and brother of Arab and Muslim countries,” adding that it has “always firmly supported the just cause of the Palestinian people to restore their legitimate national rights and interests.”
Since hostilities began, China’s Foreign Ministry has repeatedly stopped short of condemning Hamas, instead calling for de-escalation and a “two-state solution” for an independent Palestine by Israel and Palestine.
Since the end of China’s nearly three-year COVID lockdowns, Xi has launched a diplomatic push aimed at countering the United States and its allies, who he says are trying to contain and suppress his country.
Beijing has deepened alliances with non-Western-led multilateral groups such as the BRICS, while strengthening ties with countries in the Middle East and the Global South.
On Monday, Wang added that China would work to “suppress the fighting in Gaza as soon as possible, alleviate the humanitarian crisis and promote an early, comprehensive, just and lasting solution to the Palestinian issue.”
China’s special envoy to the Middle East, Zhai Jun, last year engaged officials from Israel and the Palestinian Authority – which rules in the occupied West Bank – as well as the Arab League and the EU to discuss a two-state solution and recognition for Palestine at the United Nations.
Reporting by Yew Lun Tian, Laurie Chen and the Beijing Newsroom; Edited by Edmund Klamann and Simon Cameron-Moore
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