Saudi Arabia Condemns Israeli Plan to Occupy Gaza, Urges Global Action
Riyadh: Saudi Arabia has strongly condemned Israel’s newly declared plan to occupy the Gaza Strip, calling it a blatant violation of international law and a continuation of what it described as “barbaric practices and ethnic cleansing” against the Palestinian people.
In a statement released by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Kingdom denounced systematic displacement, inhumane policies, and war crimes committed by Israeli forces, warning that such actions will further destabilize the region and undermine global peace efforts.
Israel’s government recently approved a plan to take control of Gaza City, marking a new escalation in its 22-month-long military campaign launched after Hamas’ attack on October 7, 2023.
“The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia strongly condemns the Israeli occupation authorities’ decision to occupy the Gaza Strip and denounces the continued perpetration of forced displacement and ethnic cleansing against the brotherly Palestinian people,” the statement read.
Saudi Arabia stressed that the Palestinian people have a legitimate right to their land, protected under international law and humanitarian conventions, and accused Israeli authorities of disregarding both history and global norms.
The Kingdom also expressed deep frustration over what it called the international community’s failure, particularly that of the United Nations Security Council, to take decisive action, warning that continued inaction undermines the credibility of the global system and emboldens perpetrators of war crimes.
“The ongoing failure of the international community and the UN Security Council threatens to erode the legitimacy of the international system and facilitates genocide and forced displacement in plain sight,” the ministry said.
Saudi Arabia urged an immediate, coordinated international response, including sanctions against Israeli authorities, and called for renewed efforts to achieve a just and lasting resolution to the Palestinian issue.
The Kingdom reaffirmed its support for the two-state solution based on the 1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as the capital of an independent Palestinian state.
“Peace cannot be achieved without justice for the Palestinian people,” the statement emphasized. “The Kingdom calls on the international community to mobilize efforts toward establishing an independent Palestinian state along the 1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital.”
Israel’s military operations in Gaza have already killed tens of thousands of Palestinians, devastated infrastructure, and pushed the enclave’s population toward famine, according to humanitarian organizations.