Malaysia urges Israel stop atrocities against Palestinians, agree to peace plan - PM

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia is firm in its stand that Israel stop the atrocities against Palestinians, release all Palestinian prisoners and agree to a peace plan, said Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.

In a post on Facebook today, Anwar said he conveyed the matter when he met the Hamas delegation, led by its leader, Ismail Haniyeh, and former Hamas chairman Khaled Mashal in Qatar.

He said Malaysia will also continue to commit to playing its role at the international level to stop the attack on Rafah including mobilizing more efforts to help victims of the war in Gaza, especially in terms of humanitarian aid, medicine and education.

"Since the conflict broke out (almost) eight months ago, hundreds of thousands of Palestinians have been killed and injured with half of the land of Gaza in permanent destruction due to the brutality of the Zionist regime.

"Malaysia appreciates the willingness of Hamas to release prisoners, especially children and women, and to accept the peace plan of the Arab world, the OIC (Organisation of Islamic Cooperation) and the international community," said Anwar.

At the meeting, the Prime Minister said he also conveyed his condolences on the passing of Ismail's family members who were killed in the brutal bombing by the Zionist regime.

Anwar said he was also briefed on the latest situation in Gaza and Rafah.

Yesterday, Anwar, who is currently on a three-day official visit to Qatar, met the two top leaders of the Qatari government to discuss the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, taking into account the latest developments in the Gaza Strip.

He said the two countries agreed that all parties should play a role in finding a solution to end the suffering of the Palestinian people.

Malaysia is one of the countries that loudly condemns the Zionist atrocities and supports efforts towards the establishment of an independent and sovereign Palestinian state.

The battle between Palestine and the zionist regime, which has been going on for more than seven months since Oct 7 last year, is culminating with Israel's latest invasion of Rafah, claiming more than 35,000 Palestinian lives so far.

Meanwhile, a Bernama journalist in QATAR reported that the meeting between Anwar and Haniyeh lasted over an hour.

It was Anwar's first face-to-face meeting with Haniyeh as Prime Minister of Malaysia.

Anwar has met the top Hamas leader twice, with the last one in 2020 when Haniyeh visited Malaysia.

They had also met in 2019.

-- BERNAMA

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