Qatar’s Prime Minister, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani has called for international law to be ‘applied justly’ in dealing with the conflict between Israel and Hamas.
Speaking at the UN Security Council, he stated that international law should also be applied “without double standards and without preferential treatment.”
“The double standards applied by the international community regarding the carnages and the crimes perpetrated by the Israeli occupation against civilians and civilian infrastructure … is a stain on the conscience of humanity,” Al Thani said.
Speaking on the extended truce, which Qatar has helped mediate, the minister said the agreement has allowed more “badly needed” humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip.
He said that Qatar is keen on seeing the council take steps towards applying a “sustainable ceasefire”, and implementing measures to guarantee the flow of “sufficient humanitarian aid, and to secure the delivery thereof without any impediments.”
He also suggested establishing a mechanism to monitor the delivery of humanitarian aid though “all the crossings” into the enclave, and called on Israel to abide by its obligations under international law.
Addressing the Security Council, UN Secretary-General said that “nowhere is safe” in Gaza, and notes that 80 percent of its residents have been forced from their homes.
Antonio Guterres added that the scale of death and destruction are “characteristic of the use of wide-area explosive weapons in populated areas.”
Additionally, Palestinian Foreign Minister, Riyad al-Maliki told the Security Council that the Gaza truce “must become a ceasefire, a permanent ceasefire.”
“The massacres cannot be allowed to resume. This is not a war, this is a carnage that nothing and no one can justify. It must be brought to an end,” he said.
Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Minister, Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud called on the UN Security Council to “live up to its responsibilities” and enforce a lasting ceasefire in Gaza.
He said that the aid that is currently trickling into the enclave is “by far less than is needed.”
“The danger is that if this … truce expires, that we will return to the killing at the scale that we have seen, which is unbearable,” he averred.
“We are here to make a clear statement – that a truce is not enough. What is needed is a ceasefire,” he said.
Wednesday marked the last day of the current pause in Israel’s war on Gaza, but negotiations to extend the truce continue.
Israel Poised To Resume War
Meanwhile, Israeli army stated that plans are in place for resumption of war in Gaza.
In a brief post on its X account, the army announced that its Chief of staff approved plans for the “continuation of fighting.”
It did not provide additional details on what the plans entail exactly, or when the fighting would resume.
Earlier, Prime Minister of Israel, Benjamin Netanyahu issued a video statement insisting that Israel will return to fighting in Gaza after the end of the pause.
“From the beginning of the war, I set three goals – the elimination of Hamas, the return of all our abductees, and to ensure that Gaza will never again be a threat to Israel. These three goals remain in place,” he said.
“In the last week, we achieved a very great achievement – the return of many dozens of our abductees. A week ago it would have sounded imaginary, but we achieved it. But in the last few days I hear a question – after this phase of returning our abductees is exhausted, will Israel return to fighting? So my answer is an unequivocal yes.”
Benjamin Netanyahu
“There is no way we are not going back to fighting until the end,” the Israeli Prime Minister asserted.
He added, “This is my policy, the entire cabinet stands behind it, the entire government stands behind it, the soldiers stand behind it, the people stand behind it – this is exactly what we will do.”
