Violence in Gaza of grave concern, says India, calls for talks between Israel and Palestine
At least 44 Palestinians were killed over the weekend as Tel Aviv launched pre-emptive air strikes, anticipating an attack by an Iran-backed militant group.
At a United Nations Security Council meeting on Monday, India called for resuming dialogue between Israel and Palestine, hours after a fresh round of attack on Gaza by security forces of Tel Aviv ended in a ceasefire.
The emergency meeting of the UN body was convened after three days of Israeli air raids on Palestine. At least 44 Palestinians, including several civilians and 15 children, were killed in the bombings that started on Friday, Al Jazeera reported, citing Gaza’s health ministry.
Israel said it launched the pre-emptive strikes anticipating what it claimed would have been an attack by the Iran-backed Palestinian militant group Islamic Jihad. Late on Sunday, the two sides reached a truce brokered by Egypt even as the bombings had nearly ceased by then already, according to Reuters.
At the UN Security Council meeting on Monday, India said it was a matter of “grave concern” that the violence continued in Gaza despite diplomatic parleys. Permanent Representative to the United Nations Ruchira Kamboj thanked the Egyptian government in particular for its role in negotiating the ceasefire.
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The Indian diplomat advocated in favour of a “two-state solution”, which she said was the only way to ensure long-term peace.
Kamboj stressed that the United Nations and all member countries of the global body should work towards “...establishment of a sovereign, independent and viable state of Palestine living within secure and recognised borders, side by side, at peace with Israel, taking into consideration the legitimate security needs of Israel.”
The “two-state solution” refers to resolving the Israel-Palestine conflict by establishing an independent Palestine. Most governments and global bodies, like the United Nations, have recognised the “two-state solution” as their target to achieve in order to resolve the conflict.
However, the theory involves complications such as lack of consensus on the prospective borders of Israel and Palestine under the “two-state solution”, and the conflict over both sides claiming Jerusalem as their capital.