At the emergency BRICS meeting, H.H. Sheikh Mohamed emphasised reviving the peace process as the sole solution to the crisis, urging resolution of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict through a two-State framework which includes the establishment of an independent and sovereign Palestinian State….reports Asian Lite News
UAE President His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan has reiterated the UAE’s call for the protection of civilians in the Gaza Strip, unimpeded humanitarian access and an immediate ceasefire, and urged the international community to do all in its power to bring an end to the conflict and ease the suffering of those affected.
His Highness’s comments came on the occasion of a virtual summit yesterday of the five BRICS countries along with those nations recently invited to join, which include the UAE. The ‘BRICS Extraordinary Joint Meeting on the Middle East situation in Gaza’ was convened by South African President Cyril Ramaphosa in his capacity as current Chair of the BRICS partnership.
In a statement issued at the summit, President His Highness Sheikh Mohamed highlighted the increasingly desperate humanitarian crisis facing the people of Gaza and stressed the need to ensure the safe, secure, prompt, and regular delivery of humanitarian aid to those in need. His Highness called for an urgent end to hostilities, warning that allowing the fighting to continue will result in further casualties and an increased risk of the conflict spilling over to threaten regional stability.
Sheikh Mohamed noted that the only way to address the crisis is to revive the peace process and resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict on the basis of the two-State solution and the establishment of an independent and sovereign Palestinian State on the 1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital.
The UAE President called on the BRICS members and other nations to seek to create an environment of enduring peace in the Middle East, and to pursue all efforts to ensure that dialogue and peaceful coexistence become a path to stability in the region.
Saudi Urges Ban on Weapons Export to Israel
Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman on Tuesday urged all nations to cease weapon exports to Israel, according to Al Arabiya Post.
Saudi Arabia’s Crown Price made this request during an extraordinary BRICS Joint Meeting, which was being held virtually to address the Israel-Hamas conflict. Saudi further demanded the start of a serious and comprehensive peace process to establish a Palestinian state along the borders of 1967, reported Al Arabiya Post.
“The Kingdom’s position is constant and firm; there is no way to achieve security and stability in Palestine except through the implementation of international decisions related to the two-state solution,” he stressed.
The Saudi Crown Prince restated the country’s rejection of Israel’s military operations in the Gaza Strip and demanded an immediate halt to them. Additionally, he said that the “brutal crimes” unfolding in Gaza demand a collective effort to bring them to an end, Al Arabiya Post reported.
At the meeting, the Crown Prince reiterated Saudi Arabia’s rejection of the forced displacement of Palestinians from the Gaza Strip and called for collective efforts to stop the deterioration of the humanitarian conditions in the enclave.
Since the beginning of the war, Saudi Arabia has made tireless efforts to protect civilians in the Gaza Strip, he added.
The BRICS extraordinary meeting was hosted by the BRICS chair South Africa who accused Israel of war crimes and “genocide” in the Palestinian territory. The BRICS group of nations in a joint statement also called for an immediate and sustained humanitarian truce in Gaza.
The leaders of the BRICS countries–Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa– joined the virtual meeting along with their counterparts from newly added member states. United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres also participated in the virtual meeting.