A Palestinian woman covered in dust reacts following an Israeli airstrike on buildings in Rafah, in the southern Gaza Strip on Oct 17, 2023. (PHOTO / AFP)
TEHRAN/CAIRO/MOSCOW/NICOSIA/TUNIS/LUANDA/OTTAWA/CANBERRA/ANKARA/CAIRO - Iran's Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian has blamed the United States for fueling and expanding the Israel-Hamas conflict by adopting "unconstructive policies" and providing support for Israel to launch more attacks on the Gaza Strip.
Amir-Abdollahian made the remarks on Monday when speaking with European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell by phone, according to a statement released by Iran's Foreign Ministry on Tuesday.
Borrell said the expansion of the tension in the region was "very dangerous," and called on all sides to exercise restraint
Borrell said the expansion of the tension in the region was "very dangerous," and called on all sides to exercise restraint.
He said the EU would continue its efforts to put an end to the conflict and underlined the necessity of opening humanitarian corridors in order to send aid to civilians in Gaza. He also stressed Iran's important role in easing tensions in the region.
Palestinian Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) launched on Oct 7 a surprise attack against Israeli military targets and towns, prompting extensive Israeli airstrikes on Gaza. Hamas attacks killed more than 1,300 people in Israel, according to figures released by Israel's military. Israeli attacks have killed 2,808 Palestinians, according to figures released by the the Hamas-run Health Ministry.
Guarantor formula
Türkiye has put forward a guarantor formula to end the new round of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and is seeking to turn the crisis into an opportunity for peace, the state-run TRT broadcaster reported on Tuesday.
The parties in the conflict should have guarantors for permanent peace, TRT quoted Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan as saying on Tuesday.
The idea had been conveyed to the interlocutors, the report added.
Fidan said the international community should take an attitude that forces Israel to accept a two-state solution, and Türkiye shared its views on this issue with relevant parties.
The Turkish side has presented the main idea about guarantors and said that its mechanism should be discussed separately, he stated.
Multiple countries including Türkiye should act as guarantors once both parties reach an agreement, with the responsibility to ensure its implementation, he explained.
Fidan on Monday discussed the possibility of the release of hostages during a phone call with Ismail Haniyeh, the head of the political bureau of Hamas.
Injured Palestinians arrive to the al-Shifa Hospital, following Israeli airstrikes on Gaza City, central Gaza Strip, Oct 16, 2023. (PHOTO / AP)
Presidents hold phone talks
Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi on Monday highlighted the necessity of making immediate efforts to put an end to Israeli attacks against Gaza in separate phone calls with his Russian and Turkish counterparts, according to statements from the Iranian president's office.
In a phone talk with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Raisi warned of the possible expansion of the conflict, calling on the Muslim world to "make efforts to end Israel's brutal attacks against Gaza and lift the siege on the enclave."
Erdogan, for his part, said measures such as the US aircraft carrier's presence in the region and bombardment of airports in Syria's Aleppo and Damascus could expand the Israel-Hamas conflict to broader parts of the region.
He noted that Türkiye is trying to assist the people in Gaza, adding that the achievement of a cease-fire, ceasing attacks on Gaza, and lifting the city's siege are three important and fundamental priorities to control the escalation at this critical point.
Speaking to Russian President Vladimir Putin, Raisi blamed Israel's intensification and continuation of military operations in Gaza, which were "supported by Western states, especially the United States."
"The major disaster that is occurring in the region is an outcome of the policies of the US and Israel's other Western supporters, which are doomed to failure," Raisi stressed.
ALSO READ: Israel evacuates residents near Lebanon border as tensions grow
Putin said that Russia is ready to coordinate efforts with all constructively minded partners to bring an end to the violence in the Palestinian-Israeli conflict and stabilize the situation
For his part, Putin said the large-scale Israeli attacks against a densely-populated region, where more than 2 million defenseless people live, "are in no way justifiable and must be immediately stopped."
He warned that carrying out ground operations in Gaza would have very heavy human and military costs and consequences, stressing that the US sought to proceed with its desired approach toward the resolution of the Palestinian issue alone, but it has ended in failure.
Putin also discussed with Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi over Gaza during a phone conversation.
The two leaders reviewed diplomatic efforts underway to contain the situation and agreed on the importance of restoring calm and stability in the region, the Egyptian Presidency said in a statement.
They stressed the protection of civilians, warning of the gravity of the humanitarian conditions in the Gaza Strip. Both sides underscored the urgency to provide safe access to humanitarian assistance to the Gazans.
The two sides also highlighted the importance of addressing the causes of the crisis, particularly the continued absence of political prospects to settle the Palestinian cause and establish a Palestinian state in accordance with international legitimacy resolutions.
ALSO READ:PM: New war front in Lebanon in 'no one's interest'
Putin said that Russia is ready to coordinate efforts with all constructively minded partners to bring an end to the violence in the Palestinian-Israeli conflict and stabilize the situation.
The Russian leader made the statement during separate telephone conversations with Raisi, Sisi, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, in which the leaders discussed the recent escalation in the conflict between Israel and Palestine.
He noted that Russia's draft resolution, recently proposed to the United Nations Security Council, calls for the implementation of an immediate humanitarian truce, adding that the resolution is not politicized in any way.
Putin reiterated that a long-term fair solution to the conflict should provide for the establishment of an independent Palestinian state coexisting in peace and security with Israel.
The leaders further expressed extreme concern over the escalation in hostilities between Palestine and Israel, particularly the "catastrophic increase" in the number of civilian casualties and the deepening humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip.
All presidents agreed on the need to implement an immediate ceasefire and humanitarian truce to provide assistance to those in need, particularly considering the serious concern that the conflict could escalate into a regional war.
Humanitarian aid convoy for the Gaza Strip is parked in Arish, Egypt, Oct 16, 2023. (PHOTO / AP)
Humanitarian aid
Tens of trucks loaded with humanitarian aid, medical supplies, food and blankets are lining up on Tuesday at the Rafah crossing, waiting for access to the coastal enclave of Palestine from the Egyptian side.
"Trucks moved from Arish city in north Sinai in the early hours of Tuesday to the Rafah crossing," Shihata Saber, a truck driver told Xinhua.
"I'm proud to be part of the covey. We are ready to enter aid to our brothers in Palestine," said Saber, who had waited for nearly four days after loading the aid in Arish.
After crossing Rafah, the trucks will head to the Kerem Shalom border crossing to be inspected by the Israeli side before moving to Gaza, an Egyptian security official told Xinhua on condition of anonymity.
Shipments of aid from Jordan, Türkiye and the United Arab Emirates had arrived at the Arish airport, 50 km west of Rafah, together with medical supplies provided by the World Health Organization.
"Since the beginning of the conflict, Egypt attempted to keep the Rafah crossing bordering with Gaza open to deliver aid in coordination with the United Nations," said Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry in a joint press conference with his French counterpart on Monday.
"(However) The Israeli government has not taken any measure from the side of Gaza to allow access," he said.
Palestinians take shelter from the Israeli bombardment at a UN, school in Khan Younis in the Gaza Strip, on Monday, Oct 16, 2023. (PHOTO / AP)
Civilian evacuation
Also on Monday, twenty-six countries have requested Cyprus' assistance in repatriating their nationals from both Israel and the Gaza Strip, said Konstantinos Letymbiotis, spokesman for the government of Cyprus.
"We are responding to the best of our abilities," Letymbiotis said.
Earlier on Monday, Cyprus' National Council examined the situation in the region and possible developments that could affect Cyprus.
Cyprus has activated a national emergency plan and mobilized government services and non-governmental organizations to provide assistance to thousands of people who are expected to arrive in Cyprus.
Portugal, the United Kingdom and Denmark have already evacuated aboard military transport planes from Tel Aviv to Cyprus around 600 people, of whom 447 have already departed from Cyprus on commercial flights.
The Royal Australian Air Force has joined the effort to repatriate Australian citizens stranded in Israel.
Richard Marles, the minister for defense and deputy prime minister, Penny Wong, foreign affairs minister, and Bill Shorten, the minister for government services, on Monday evening announced that two Air Force aircraft joined a government-supported charter to fly 255 Australian citizens from Tel Aviv's Ben Gurion Airport to Dubai on Monday.
A woman with her children exits the arrivals lounge after disembarking from a cruise liner that brought them from Haifa, Israel, to the port in Limassol, Cyprus, on Oct 17, 2023. (PHOTO / AP)
On Monday, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kanaani said the US government must be held to account for Israeli "crimes" against Palestinians
Cypriot authorities have also provided assistance to another 2,500 people, mostly Israelis, who arrived on commercial flights.
The number of people arriving aboard commercial flights has dropped sharply, as TUS Airways and Cyprus Airways have suspended their flights to and from Tel Aviv since the end of last week, citing security considerations.
"We are following the developments closely, and we expect the next few days to be critical," Letymbiotis said.
He added that the president of Cyprus will raise the issue at an extraordinary meeting of the European Council on Tuesday, with an emphasis on the need to protect civilians.
Tunisia calls on international intervention
Meanwhile, Tunisian Parliament Speaker Ibrahim Bouderbala called on the international community to intervene immediately to stop the ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict and lift the siege on the Gaza Strip, the official news agency Tunis Afrique Presse reported.
Bouderbala made the remarks at an online emergency meeting with heads of parliaments for member states of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation to discuss the repercussions of the conflict.
The speaker also called for accelerating the delivery of urgent humanitarian aid to the Palestinians.
He urged OIC member states and regional and international bodies to "condemn the Israeli attacks on civilians and to summon Israel to comply with international resolutions."
Tunisia sent on Sunday a relief plane to the Palestinian people, carrying about 12 tons of medical and health supplies and infant formula.
Angola appeals for peaceful solution
In a parliamentary address on Monday, Angolan President Joao Lourenco called for preventing a humanitarian disaster in Gaza and appealed for a peaceful resolution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
During his State of the Nation Address at the National Assembly of Angola, marking the opening of the new parliamentary year, Lourenco expressed concern about the escalating tension in the Middle East.
"While acknowledging Israel's right to defend itself and protect the lives of its citizens, the truth is that the Palestinian people also possess the same right. They have been living for decades in a continuous occupation and annexation of parts of their territory - a situation deemed unacceptable in the 21st century," he said.
Canada: Crimes targeting Jews rise
Canada has seen a rise in hate crimes targeting Jewish people since the start of the bloody Hamas-Israel conflict, Canadian media reports said on Monday.
Incidents of hate crimes have been recorded in several parts of the country, including Toronto, the capital Ottawa and the westernmost province of British Columbia, the National Post newspaper reported.
ALSO READ: Hamas denies temporary ceasefire with Israel in Gaza
In light of the ongoing situation, the Canadian government on Monday appointed senior diplomat Deborah Lyons as the country's Special Envoy on Preserving Holocaust Remembrance and Combating Antisemitism.
Lyons told local media she is deeply concerned about a rise in hate speech targeting Jewish people, particularly on university campuses and social media.
Issuing a press statement on Oct 14, the Ontario Provincial Police said it was aware of "global online threats of violence regarding the situation in the Middle East."
"We have increased police patrols and presence in areas of cultural and religious significance and will maintain open lines of communication with community leaders," it said. "We want to assure the people of Ontario that we continue to focus on public safety."
