Saudi FM rejects targeting of civilians in Gaza violence

萝莉视频鈥檚 Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan stressed the need to stop the escalation and for all parties to respect international humanitarian law. (AFP)
Short Url
  • Prince Faisal鈥檚 diplomatic efforts advocated for peace during calls with his counterparts in the US, EU, Qatar, Jordan and Egypt
  • Saudi foreign minister emphasized the need for a joint action plan during the calls

RIYADH: 萝莉视频鈥檚 Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan on Saturday said that the Kingdom rejected the targeting of unarmed civilians 鈥渋n any way,鈥� according to a foreign ministry statement.
His comments came during separate phone calls with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and EU Foreign Policy Chief Josep Borrell to discuss violence in Gaza, which broke out on Saturday morning.
The Palestinian Hamas group launched the biggest attack on Israel in years and the assault followed months of surging violence in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, with fatalities in the occupied West Bank hitting a scale not seen in years.
The early morning Hamas offensive by air, land and sea was met by Israeli air strikes on the blockaded coastal enclave, in the bloodiest escalation with the Palestinians since May 2021.
Prince Faisal stressed the need to stop the escalation and for all parties to respect international humanitarian law.
He also called for 鈥渃oncerted efforts to calm the situation and avoid further violence,鈥� the ministry said.
The Saudi minister also held separate calls with his Qatari counterpart Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim, and his Egyptian and Jordanian counterparts, where he emphasised the need for a joint action plan.

Prior to these calls, Prince Faisal issued a statement urging an immediate cessation of hostilities and calling upon the international community to initiate a peace initiative aimed at achieving a sustainable two-state resolution.

Prince Faisal asserted last month that 鈥渢here is no solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict other than the two state solution鈥�, and that while 鈥減eople have started losing hope in the two-state solution, our efforts aim to bring it back to the forefront.鈥�

Meanwhile, Blinken urged the Palestinian Authority to restore calm and stability in the West Bank in a call with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, the US State Department said in a statement.
Blinken 鈥渞eiterated the United States鈥� unequivocal condemnation of the terrorist attacks by Hamas against Israel, and called on all leadership in the region to condemn them,鈥� a State Department spokesperson said.
鈥淭he Secretary urged the Palestinian Authority to continue and enhance steps to restore calm and stability in the West Bank,鈥� the spokesperson said.
Abbas told Blinken that 鈥渋njustice鈥� toward Palestinians is driving the conflict with Israel to an 鈥渆xplosion,鈥� Palestinian news agency WAFA said.
He also said the ongoing escalation is down to the 鈥減ractices of the colonialists and the Israeli occupation forces, and the aggression against Islamic and Christian sanctities,鈥� according to WAFA.
US President Joe Biden made clear in a call with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that 鈥渨e stand ready to offer all appropriate means of support,鈥� according to the White House. He also called Jordan鈥檚 King Abdullah II.
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi warned 鈥渁gainst the danger of the situation deteriorating and sliding into more violence.鈥�
In a call with French President Emmanuel Macron, he urged international cooperation on stopping the conflict from getting worse.
Cairo has historically been a key mediator in conflicts between the two sides.
Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry spoke to his Jordanian, UAE, Turkish, Russian, German, French, Russian and Spanish counterparts, and to Borrell, where he stressed the 鈥渋mportance of stopping the escalation and all sides鈥� exercising restraint.鈥�
A foreign ministry statement said Shoukry sought to rally 鈥渋nternational actors鈥� to 鈥渋ntervene immediately.鈥�
In a call with Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi, both ministers 鈥渆xpressed their deep concern about the progressive and dangerous deterioration of events.鈥�
In a separate statement, Safadi warned of the 鈥渧olatility鈥� of the situation, 鈥減articularly in light of what cities and areas of the West Bank are witnessing of Israeli attacks and violations against the Palestinian people.鈥�
Shoukry called UAE Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah Bin Zayed to discuss 鈥渢he gravity of the current situation and the need to make every effort to prevent the security situation from getting out of control.鈥�
Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan held calls with his regional counterparts to discuss the fighting between Israel and the Palestinians, a foreign ministry source said, as Ankara said it stood ready to help de-escalate the situation.
The source said Fidan discussed the conflict with his Saudi, Qatari, Iranian, Palestinian and Egyptian counterparts, but did not provide any further details. The source later said Fidan had also discussed the situation with Blinken in a call.