[🇧🇩] Israel and Hamas war in Gaza-----Can Bangladesh be a peace broker?

Source: https://www.thedailystar.net/news/bangladesh/diplomacy/news/foreign-minister-calls-greater-oic-role-end-gaza-atrocities-3559996

Foreign minister calls for greater OIC role to end Gaza atrocities​

Foreign Minister Hasan Mahmud. File photo

Foreign Minister Hasan Mahmud called on the OIC member states to take alternate measures to end the conflict in Gaza and to ensure rights for the Palestinian people.

The foreign minister reiterated Bangladesh's firm support for the Palestinian cause and called for an immediate ceasefire and opening of humanitarian corridors in the besieged territory.

While addressing the 19th Extraordinary CFM of the OIC on Israel's' aggression on the Palestinian People in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, he also stressed on the importance of the Islamic Financial Safety Net to ensure basic necessities for the Palestinians.

Foreign minister, mentioning the strong statement delivered by Bangladesh at the ICJ in February for the Palestinians, hoped that peace will be established soon in the region.

Noting the current stalemate at the United Nations Security Council, Foreign Minister highlighted the need for its reform so that decision on globally effecting issues could be reached.

He stressed the importance of Muslim Ummah's unity to stop atrocities against Palestinians, ensuring their safe and peaceful living in their homeland.

Earlier yesterday, Dr Hasan Mahmud paid a courtesy call on Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud at the OIC Secretariat in Jeddah.

Expressing satisfaction at bilateral ties, Dr Mahmud hoped for deeper cooperation between Bangladesh and Saudi Arabia, anticipating a visit from Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

Al Saud affirmed Saudi Arabia's commitment to sophisticated economic cooperation.

They discussed increasing sectoral cooperation, trade, and investment opportunities, with Dr. Mahmud seeking cooperation in crude oil purchase, which Al Saud promised to consider, including investments in refinery and petrochemical industries.

Al Saud congratulated Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on her re-election and praised her leadership in hosting Rohingya refugees, pledging Saudi Arabia's full support.

Hasan Mahmud also met with OIC Secretary General Hissein Brahim Taha.

Taha praised Sheikh Hasina's leadership and reaffirmed OIC's support for Rohingya people.

The foreign minister advocated for greater trade and investment among OIC member states to mitigate economic challenges stemming from the Russia-Ukraine conflict, proposing a dedicated cell at the OIC Secretariat for trade-related information dissemination.​

 

[Saif]

Germany, Portugal say time not ripe to recognise Palestinian state

Germany and Portugal express reservations about recognizing a Palestinian state, citing lack of clarity on territory and unresolved issues, preferring a negotiated two-state solution.

en.prothomalo.com

Germany, Portugal say time not ripe to recognise Palestinian state
AFPBerlin
Published: 24 May 2024, 21: 53

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz (R) and Portuguese Prime Minister Luis Montenegro address a joint press conference after talks at the Chancellery in Berlin, Germany on 24 May, 2024AFP

The leaders of Germany and Portugal said Friday the time was not ripe to recognise a Palestinian state, after three other European nations announced plans to do so.

"We have no reason to recognise the Palestinian Authority as a separate state now," Chancellor Olaf Scholz told a press conference after talks with Portuguese Prime Minister Luis Montenegro.

"There is no clarity about the territory of the state and other questions related to it," he said.

"What we need is a negotiated solution between Israel and the Palestinians that amounts to a two-state solution... but we are still a long way from there," he said.

To read the rest of the news, please click on the link above.​

 

[Saif]

World Court's order on Rafah does not rule out entire offensive, Israel says

Israel considers that an order by the World Court to halt its military offensive on Rafah in southern Gaza allows room for some military action there, Israeli officials said

www.thedailystar.net

World Court's order on Rafah does not rule out entire offensive, Israel says

Photo: AFP

Israel considers that an order by the World Court to halt its military offensive on Rafah in southern Gaza allows room for some military action there, Israeli officials said.

In an emergency ruling in South Africa's case accusing Israel of genocide, judges at the International Court of Justice ordered Israel on Friday to immediately halt its assault on Rafah, where Israel says it is rooting out Hamas fighters.

"What they are asking us, is not to commit genocide in Rafah. We did not commit genocide and we will not commit genocide," Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's national security adviser, Tzachi Hanegbi, told Israel's N12 TV on Saturday.

Asked whether the Rafah offensive would continue, Hanegbi said: "According to international law, we have the right to defend ourselves and the evidence is that the court is not preventing us from continuing to defend ourselves."​

To read the rest of the news, please click on the link above.

 

[Saif]

An open letter on Gaza from Bangladesh

From Bangladesh and across the world, 126 Bangladeshi scholars, teachers and researchers condemn Israel's war in Gaza.

www.thedailystar.net

An open letter on Gaza from Bangladesh

Nearly 40,000 Palestinians have been killed by the occupier in seven months, most of whom are women and children. FILE PHOTO: REUTERS

As we write this, Israel has embarked on the final phase of its genocidal war in Gaza, bombing Rafah where more than a million Palestinians have been driven by repeated evacuations from the rest of the Gaza Strip. Today, they have nowhere left to go.

Nearly 40,000 Palestinians have been killed by the occupier in seven months, most of whom are women and children. Hundreds of thousands more are injured. More than a million people have lost their homes, and the infrastructure of life has been obliterated by the occupation's indiscriminate bombing. Netanyahu's policy of forced starvation has created a famine in Gaza. International organisations are unable to carry out adequate relief operations in the face of Israeli bombings and Zionist mobs preventing the entry of aid trucks. Genocidal actions are being carried out in the West Bank as well. Entire villages have been literally burned down by Zionist settlers backed by soldiers, bulldozers, and tanks.

To read the rest of the news, please click on the link above.​

 

[Saif]

Macron discusses Gaza war with Arab ministers

France’s president, Qatar’s prime minister and the foreign ministers of Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Jordan held talks Friday on the Gaza war and ways to set up a Palestinian state alongside Israel...

www.newagebd.net

Macron discusses Gaza war with Arab ministers
Agence France-Presse . Paris 25 May, 2024, 22:51

Emmanuel Macron

France's president, Qatar's prime minister and the foreign ministers of Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Jordan held talks Friday on the Gaza war and ways to set up a Palestinian state alongside Israel, the French presidency said.

French president Emmanuel Macron organised the meeting amid growing international concerns over the Israel-Hamas war. It came a few hours after the UN's top court ordered Israel to halt its offensive in the Gaza city of Rafah.

Efforts to revive a 'two-state' solution to the wider Middle East conflict and humanitarian efforts for Gaza dominated the talks.

The five countries also discussed how to 'increase and deepen their cooperation' and 'the effective implementation of the two-state solution, the only effective way to guarantee the peace and security of the state of Israel and to respond to the legitimate aspirations of the Palestinians,' the statement added.

Macron and France's Foreign Minister Stephane Sejourne were joined at the meeting by Qatar's Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani and foreign ministers Sameh Shoukry of Egypt, Ayman Safadi of Jordan and Faisal bin Farhan al-Saud of Saudi Arabia, the Elysee said.

To read the rest of the news, please click on the link above.​

 

[Saif]

Hamas claims to have taken Israeli soldier 'prisoner'

The Palestinian group targeted Israeli forces in a tunnel in the Jabalia camp and "all their members were killed

en.prothomalo.com

Hamas claims to have taken Israeli soldier 'prisoner'
AFP Palestinian Territories
Published: 26 May 2024, 11: 27

A woman and boy walk with belongings past barbed-wire fences as they flee from Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip on 11 May, 2024 amid the ongoing conflict in the Palestinian territory between Israel and Hamas.AFP

The armed wing of Hamas said it had taken "prisoner" at least one Israeli soldier in an ambush on Saturday in the Gaza Strip, a claim Israel denied.

The Palestinian group targeted Israeli forces in a tunnel in the Jabalia camp and "all their members were killed, wounded or taken prisoner," said Abu Obeida, spokesman for the Ezzedine al-Qassam Brigades.

Hamas also broadcast images of a soldier being dragged along the ground, presenting the soldier as a captured Israeli. The images could not be immediately authenticated by AFP.

In a statement on Telegram, the Israeli army said it "clarifies that there is no incident in which a soldier was abducted".

Israeli warplanes and artillery pounded Rafah on Saturday, as the government dismissed an order by the top UN court to halt its military offensive in the southern Gaza city.

At the same time, renewed international efforts were underway aimed at securing a ceasefire in the war sparked by Hamas's unprecedented 7 October attack on Israel.

To read the rest of the news, please click on the link above.​