According to the president, his country, which currently holds the pro tempore presidency of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States, took over the position of United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, saying that Gaza has become a cemetery for Palestinian children.
Even if Israel establishes a right to self-defense in view of the events of October 7th (when the Islamic resistance movement Hamas launched an attack on its territory), this cannot be disproportionate, the ruler emphasized, in view of the ongoing bomb attacks on the country’s civilian population .
“Revenge and genocide cannot be part of self-defense, and you cannot impose collective punishment,” Gonsalves said in remarks quoted by the St. Vincent Times, adding that such acts were illegal under international humanitarian law.
“The time has come when the international community simply has to speak (…) What is happening there in Gaza is terrible,” he denounced.
In just over 30 days, the Israeli army’s military offensive in the Gaza Strip has killed more than 11,000 people, most of them women and children, and injured 27,000, as well as besieging and bombing refugee camps and hospital facilities.
What’s more, the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for West Asia estimates that 96 percent of the territory’s population is facing unprecedented shortages of essential services.
dfm/las