The international community has been divided over support for Israel and Palestine in the conflict that has raged since last week.
Tension increased in the region after Hamas’s surprise attack on Israel more than a week ago. Subsequently, Israel declared war and launched brutal airstrikes on the besieged area as casualties continued to mount. There have also been several attacks on Palestinians in the occupied West Bank.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared a siege of Gaza, cutting off essential resources such as water and electricity and giving more than one million residents a 24-hour evacuation notice.
While most of the world condemns the actions of Hamas and supports Israel in its war crimes, some countries have criticized Israel’s barbaric actions and called for a ceasefire – some more directly than others. .
Algeria
The Algerian Foreign Ministry expressed deep concern over Israel’s attacks on Gaza, calling them a violation of international humanitarian law. Algeria has called for immediate international intervention to protect the Palestinian people and their rights.
african union
African Union Chairman Moussa Faki Mahamat considered the denial of Palestinians’ fundamental rights as the primary source of current tensions. The AU is appealing to both sides to cease military hostilities and return to talks.
belize
Belize has expressed its anguish over the hostilities between Hamas and Israel and called for an immediate de-escalation. They support the establishment of a Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital and advocate the right of return for displaced Palestinians.
brazil
Brazilian Foreign Minister Mauro Luiz Iker Vieira expressed disappointment at calls for Israeli forces to evacuate more than a million civilians in northern Gaza within 24 hours. Noting the United Nations assessment that such a large-scale movement of people could result in unprecedented suffering, he urged both sides to end the violence.
Reading Gaza hospitals struggle to cope with airstrikes, blockade
Colombia
Colombia’s President Gustavo Petro expelled the Israeli ambassador and asked him to “apologize and leave the country.”
In a statement on Twitter, the president said, “If we have to suspend foreign relations with Israel, we will suspend them. We do not support genocide. The President of Colombia will not be insulted.”
La barbarí del consumo basado en la muerte de los damas no lleva a un ascenso del fascismo sin example, y por tanto, a la muerte de la democratia y la libertad. Es la barbarie, ol 1933 global, como la llamo. 1933 the second year of hitler al poder.
Lo que vemos en…
– Gustavo Petro (@petrogustavo) 15 October 2023
Colombia had previously stressed the need for Israel and Palestine to engage in negotiations toward a “two-state solution.”
Cuba
Cuba condemns violence in Palestine and calls out Israel for its long-standing violations of Palestinian rights.
Indonesia
Indonesia is calling for an immediate end to the violence to prevent further casualties and says the root cause of the conflict is “Israel’s occupation of the Palestinian territories”.
Iraq
Iraq has similarly described the attacks on Gaza as “a continuation of the oppression of Palestinians under Israeli occupation.” The country has consistently protested Israel’s attacks on Gaza over the past few years.
Read more UN to vote on rival resolutions on Israel and Gaza
iran
IRan’s Foreign Ministry spokesman, Nasser Kanani, described the Palestinian resistance as “a natural response to Israel’s provocations.” He believes that the Palestinian people do not deserve to be besieged and that their retaliation should not be considered “terrorism” if there is no Israeli violence.
Ireland
The Prime Minister of Ireland, Leo Varadkar, condemned Israel’s actions, including cutting off electricity, fuel supplies and water, which he considers a violation of international humanitarian law and collective punishment.
He once spoke against Israel TV interview with RTÉ’s Prime Time program,
Kuwait
Kuwait’s Foreign Ministry has expressed concern over the escalating tensions in Gaza and called on the international community to stop violence, protect the Palestinian people and end Israel’s provocations. They warn that continued violence without restraint will undermine peace efforts and the prospects for a two-state solution.
morocco
Despite moving towards full diplomatic relations with Israel under the Abraham Accords, Morocco remains deeply concerned about the situation in Gaza and calls for an immediate end to the violence. They emphasize the importance of dialogue and negotiation as a path to a two-state solution. Morocco reiterated its full support for Palestine at the Arab League session.
malaysia
Malaysia has called for an end to violence in the Gaza Strip, citing the long-term occupation and suffering of the Palestinian people as well as the desecration of the Al-Aqsa Mosque as the root cause of the conflict.
Read more Gaza aid stuck as Egypt says Israel isn’t cooperating
maldives
The Government of Maldives expressed concern over the increasing violence in the Gaza Strip and reaffirmed its solidarity with the Palestinian people. He advocates lasting peace in the Middle East through a two-state solution based on pre-1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as the capital of Palestine.
norway
Norwegian Foreign Minister Anniken Hutefeldt strongly criticized the complete blockade of Gaza, calling it “unacceptable” and stressing that Israel’s right to self-defense must comply with international law.
Important conversation with my friend FM Shoukry @MfaEgypt About this #GazaUrgency of critical humanitarian access, how to access donor pool #AHLC In this situation, more political horizon is required.
The situation in Gaza is already serious and is getting worse with time. There should be security of citizens.
– Anniken Huitfeldt (@AHuitfeldt) 15 October 2023
She expresses deep concern about the scale of destruction in Gaza and the hardships caused to its civilian population due to the blockade.
oman
Oman’s Foreign Ministry expressed concern over the ongoing tensions between Palestinians and Israelis and stressed the importance of restraint by both sides. They call for international intervention to stop the tensions and stress the need to find a just, comprehensive and lasting solution based on the two-state solution.
Queue
Qatar called on all parties to reduce tensions and exercise restraint in view of the escalating situation in Gaza. They hold Israel responsible for the increase in Palestinian rights violations, particularly the incursion into the Al-Aqsa Mosque.
It urged the international community to force Israel to respect international law and the historical rights of the Palestinian people.
Russia
Russia stressed that the Israeli–Palestinian conflict cannot be resolved through force, but must be addressed by political and diplomatic means.
They call for an immediate ceasefire, abandonment of violence and a dialogue process with the assistance of the international community to achieve lasting peace in the Middle East.
President Vladimir Putin highlighted the need to create an independent Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital.
Pakistan
Caretaker Prime Minister Anwarul Haq Kakar reaffirmed Pakistan’s solidarity with the oppressed people of Palestine and called for an immediate ceasefire on Monday.
“We stand in solidarity with the oppressed people of Palestine and call for an immediate ceasefire and lifting of the blockade in Gaza. “Israel’s deliberate, indiscriminate and disproportionate targeting of civilians in Gaza goes against all norms of decency and is a clear violation of international law.”
Pakistan is deeply concerned over the ongoing violence and loss of life and property in Gaza. We stand in solidarity with the oppressed people of Palestine and call for an immediate ceasefire and lifting of the blockade in Gaza. The deliberate, indiscriminate and disproportionate targeting of Israel…
– Prime Minister’s Office (@PakPMO) 16 October 2023
Acting Foreign Minister Jalil Abbas Jilani also condemned the Israeli bombardment of the besieged Gaza Strip, calling the actions “genocide”.
“This is a humanitarian crisis, a situation that can be compared to genocide. In fact, this is a genocide being carried out by Israel against the people of Palestine,” Jilani said. “Our position is that any attempt to equate aggressive Israel with the Palestinian conflict is unacceptable to Pakistan.”
Pakistan does not recognize the state of Israel and has historically said that the occupied Palestinian territories should be vacated in line with UN resolutions on a two-state solution.
spain
Spain’s Social Rights Minister Ioan Bellara took to X (formerly Twitter) and asked her colleagues in the government to prosecute Netanyahu before the International Criminal Court for war crimes. “Today we raise our voices to condemn that Israel is carrying out genocide in Gaza. We call on the Government of Spain to bring Netanyahu before the International Criminal Court for war crimes.”
We urge our partner, as the Government of Spain, to bring Netanyahu before the International Criminal Court for war crimes. Here is my official statement 👇 pic.twitter.com/Wuu8nnKfVp
– Ione Belarra (@ionebelarra) 16 October 2023
Syria
Syria praised the Palestinian resistance groups behind the October 7 attack while criticizing Israel’s occupation and siege.
South Africa
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa expressed historic support for the Palestinians’ “just struggle” and condemned Israel as an “oppressive regime”.
As South Africans we have made it part of our national DNA to stand strong against all forms of prejudice, including racism, anti-Semitism, Islamophobia and xenophobia. Our thoughts and prayers are with the people of both Palestine and Israel as they go through this difficult situation… pic.twitter.com/l1xzPu31Yg
– Cyril Ramaphosa 🇿🇦 (@CyrilRamaphosa) 16 October 2023
He pointed to what many human rights groups have described as Israel’s apartheid-like policies toward Palestinians.
Venezuela
The Venezuelan Government expressed concern about the situation in the Gaza Strip and called for an end to violence in the entire Palestinian territory through direct dialogue and compliance with UN Security Council Resolution 2334.
Venezuela urged the United Nations to fulfill its role as guarantor of international peace and legitimacy.