India supported the establishment on Thursday of a ‘independent, viable and democratic state of Palestine,’ calling for the decades-long Middle East war to end. India called for a resumption of peace negotiations between Israel and Palestine in a United Nations Security Council (UNSC) session and noted that there is no alternative to a “two-state solution” to ensure lasting peace in the region.
“India is committed to the establishment of an independent, viable, democratic State of Palestine. There is no alternative to a two-state solution for ensuring meaningful and enduring peace,” said the secretary (west) of India’s ministry of external affairs Vikas Swarup at the UNSC session. He further said that any attempt to unilaterally change the status-quo that undercut efforts to advance a negotiated two-state solution should also be avoided.
India’s comments are to be found on the backdrop of the recent increases in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict following a series of missile strikes from the Israel Defense Forces, which violated a ceasefire agreement on 16 June in place since 21 May. Civil settlements in the Gaza Strip.
At the UNSC session, India’s MEA secretary said, “After a period of brief calm, tensions are rising again in Gaza. The launch of incendiary balloons from Gaza targeting civilians in Israel and the retaliatory strikes into Gaza threatens to restart the cycle of violence, which caused immense suffering and resulted in deaths recently.”
“Recent developments in Palestine are of concern. They can restart the cycle of violence, resulting in immense suffering and deaths. We urge both Israeli and Palestinian authorities to honour the ceasefire arrangement. There’s a need for immediate resumption of the Middle East Peace Process and direct negotiations between Israel and Palestine. India supports all diplomatic efforts, including by the Quartet, to strengthen the collective commitment of the international community for a peace process,” he added.
The UN representative of India said the need for the hour to provide the Palestinian civilian population, especially Gaza, with immediate humanitarian support. All the Palestinian parties should work together to ensure the well-being of conflict civilians and provide the people with the necessary assistance, India said.
“We call for reinforced cooperation between the Israeli and Palestinian authorities in the area of humanitarian aid delivery, including food and medicine, and movement of patients in and out of Gaza,” added Swarup.
The 11 days in which hundreds of rockets from Israel and Palestine fought have been concluded between Israel and Hamas. Gaza’s Ministry of Health, which is run by Hamas, reports that 253 Palestinians, including 66 children were assassinated, while 13 Israelis, one boy and the other a 5-year-old soldiers, were assassinated.
