 A Palestinian and his son walk by the Hamas armed forces in Jabalia, Northern Gaza on April 7th, 2023. (photo: AFP) |
The UN Security Council will convene an emergency meeting on Sunday on the situation in Israel after the Hamas movement launched fierce attacks at Israel. UN Special Envoy to the Middle East, Tor Wennesland, on Saturday called the situation "on the brink of danger" and urged all parties to practice maximum restraint and protect civilians.
UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Tuerk, emphasized that "civilians must never be the target of attack", and called for an immediate stop of violent actions.
Also on Saturday, the Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Saudi Arabian Ministry of Foreign Affairs called on involved parties to exercise maximum restraint and avoid putting civilians at risk. Qatar's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement that Israel is solely responsible for the ongoing escalation due to its continuous violations of the rights of the Palestinian people. Qatar supports the legal rights of Palestinian people as well as the establishment of an independent state on the 1967 borders with East Jerusalem as its capital.
The United Arab Emirates (UAE) said that as a non-permanent member of the United Nations Security Council, the UAE called for the immediate reactivation of the international Quartet to restore the Arab-Israeli peace roadmap.
Turkey and Russia called on Israel and Palestine to act wisely and practice restraint.
Meanwhile, the US and many Western countries, including the UK, France, Germany, Spain, and Ukraine, expressed support for Israel, and strongly condemned Hamas.
A spokesman for the US National Security Council said that the United States unequivocally condemned Hamas attacks against Israeli civilians and stands firmly with the government and people of Israel.
The UK and German Foreign Ministries affirmed their support for Israel's right to self-defense according to international law in the face of terrorism.
In a statement released on Sunday, the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs called on all involved parties in the Gaza Strip to immediately cease fire, protect civilians, and prevent conflict escalation.
Beijing also called for the establishment of an independent Palestinian state, and urged the international community to help to soon resume peace talks between Palestine and Israel.