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Tensions in the Middle East have raised alarm bells around the world, with leaders hanging over the deadly conflict between Israel and the Palestinians.
The Israeli army has launched hundreds of airstrikes on the Gaza Strip since Monday, while the Palestinians have launched more than 1,000 rockets.
The escalation has seen at least 56 Palestinians in Gaza – including 14 children – and six Israelis die within days, and hundreds injured, in the most intense outbreak since Israel’s seven-week war on Gaza in 2014.
Here are some reactions:
United States: ‘Stop the violence’
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Wednesday reiterated his call for an end to violence between Israel and the Palestinians during an appeal with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
“The secretary reiterated his call on all parties to defuse tensions and end the violence,” a State Department statement said.
“The secretary stressed the need for Israelis and Palestinians to be able to live in safety and security.”
Blinken said earlier that he had tasked Hady Amr, deputy secretary of state for Israel and Palestinian affairs, to visit the region immediately.
Russia: Putin calls for de-escalation, Minister calls on Israel to stop settlement activities
“Serious concerns have been expressed over the continuation of the clashes and the growing number of people killed and injured,” the Kremlin said in a statement on Wednesday.
He added that Putin had “called on the parties to defuse tensions and peacefully resolve emerging issues.”
Meanwhile, Sergei Vershinin, a Russian deputy foreign minister, called on Israel to “immediately” stop all settlement activity in the Palestinian territories, the RIA news agency reported.
Vershinin also said that Moscow called for respect for the “status quo of the sacred sites in Jerusalem,” RIA reported.
UK: Johnson urges parties to ‘show restraint’
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Wednesday urged Israel and the Palestinians to “take a step back”, calling on both sides to “show restraint”.
“The UK is deeply concerned about the growing violence and the number of civilian casualties and we want to see an urgent de-escalation of tensions,” he said on Twitter.
Turkey: Israel must be taught a ‘lesson’
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan told Russian President Vladimir Putin that the international community should “teach Israel a strong and dissuasive lesson” on its conduct towards the Palestinians.
Erdogan made the comment during a phone call with Putin on Wednesday, Turkey’s presidential communications directorate said.
The statement said Erdogan stressed the need for “the international community to teach Israel a strong and dissuasive lesson” and urged the UN Security Council to intervene quickly with “determined and clear messages” to Israel.
The statement said Erdogan suggested to Putin that an international protection force to protect the Palestinians should be considered.
EU: “ Very worried ”
European Council President Charles Michel called on Israelis and Palestinians to stop fighting and avoid civilian casualties, after meeting with Israeli President Reuven Rivlin.
“Very concerned about the recent upsurge in violence and indiscriminate targeting. The priority should be de-escalation and prevention of the loss of innocent civilian lives on both sides, ”Michel said on Twitter Wednesday.
ICC: ‘crimes’ may have been committed
The Hague-based chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court expressed concern at the escalation of violence between Israel and the Palestinians and said “crimes” may have been committed.
“I note with deep concern the escalation of violence in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, as well as in and around Gaza, and the possible commission of crimes under the Rome Statute [which founded the ICC]Fatou Bensouda said on Twitter on Wednesday.
🚨 #ICC Attorney #FatouBensouda on the recent escalation of violence in #Gaza, the #West Bank, including # East Jerusalem ⤵️ pic.twitter.com/jZlns3d92I
– International Criminal Court (@IntlCrimCourt) May 12, 2021
Israel faced fierce criticism of the bombing of residential buildings in Gaza during the 2014 war, among several tactics that are now the subject of an ICC investigation into possible war crimes. Israel is not a member of the tribunal and has rejected the investigation.
Germany: Merkel says Israel has ‘right to self-defense’
Chancellor Angela Merkel’s spokeswoman Steffen Seibert said on Wednesday that her government “condemns these relentless rocket attacks from the Gaza Strip against Israeli cities in the strongest terms”, saying they “do not can be justified ”.
“Israel has the right to defend itself against these attacks,” he added.
Seibert noted that Arab and Jewish Israeli citizens had been killed in the rocket barrage in recent days by Hamas and “allied extremist groups.”
“Their goal is to kill people arbitrarily and without discrimination,” he said.
Italy: FM calls for “ greater restraint ”
The Italian foreign minister said he and his German counterpart wanted an immediate end to violence between Israel and the Palestinians, after holding talks on Wednesday.
“We urge all parties to immediately take action aimed at de-escalation and the utmost restraint,” said Italian Foreign Minister Luigi Di Maio.
China: envoy expresses “ deep concern ”
China’s special envoy to the Middle East Zhai Jun on Wednesday expressed “deep concern” at escalating clashes between Palestinians and Israel and urged all parties to exercise restraint to avoid further casualties. .
In a meeting with Arab envoys and the Arab League’s chief representative in China, Zhai said Beijing will continue to push the UN Security Council to take action on the situation in Jerusalem as soon as possible. Is, according to a statement from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
OIC: Condemns in ‘strongest terms’ Israel’s repeated attacks
The Organization for Islamic Cooperation (OIC) condemned Israel and reiterated its support for the Palestinians.
The pan-Islamic body based in the Saudi city of Jeddah said it “condemns in the strongest terms the repeated attacks by the Israeli occupation authorities against the Palestinian people,” in a statement released Tuesday after an emergency session .
He also denounced “the continuation by the Israeli occupation forces of their colonial programs – construction of settlements, attempted confiscation of Palestinian property, forced eviction of Palestinians from their lands”.
Pakistan: ‘We are on the side of Gaza and Palestine’
Pakistan condemned Israel’s actions and called on Muslim nations to stand with the Palestinians.
Prime Minister Imran Khan took to Twitter, saying: “We are on the side of Gaza and Palestine.”
Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi, meanwhile, urged Muslim nations to unite around Israeli strikes on Palestinian civilian areas.
Protesters are expected to hold a small anti-Israel rally later today in the southern city of Karachi.
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