Palestinian Prime Minister Calls Israel Uses Starvation As A Weapon In Gaza Strip

Palestinian Prime Minister Mustafa. (Wikimedia Commons/Palestinian Prime Minister's Office/apaimages)

JAKARTA - Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Mustafa accused Israel of using hunger as a weapons of war in Gaza, calling it part of a broader genocide campaign against the Palestinian people.

Speaking at the opening session of an expanded ministerial-level meeting of the Madrid Group on Palestinian issues, held in the Spanish capital, PM Mustafa urged the international community to act immediately after the Palestinian Government declared Gaza a hunger-hit area.

"The deliberate seizure of food and aid, the continued bombing, and the destruction of all means of life committed by Israel are clear and continuing war crimes," he said.

PM Mustafa further warned that the situation in the West Bank, including occupied Jerusalem, was still dire, citing the rampant expansion of the colony, colonial violence, house destruction and forced relocation.

"This fire must end soon and unconditionally," he exclaimed.

PM Mustafa hopes that a recent preparatory meeting for a high-level international conference in New York will pave the way for concrete steps towards achieving the two-state solution and the establishment of the Palestinian state.

"This is the time to build irreversible international momentum towards full and global recognition of the Palestinian State," Prime Minister Mustafa said, calling for strong political, legal and financial support for the Palestinian Government to uphold its people's rights and maintain a two-state solution.

It is known that the latest conflict in Gaza broke out on October 7, after a Palestinian militant group led by Hamas attacked Israel's southern region, leaving 1,200 people dead and another 251 held hostage according to Israeli calculations.

In response, Israel carried out blockades, airstrikes, and military ground operations in the Gaza Strip region.

On January 19, the two countries imposed a ceasefire agreement and exchanged hostages, following a deal reached days earlier between Hamas and Israel through Egyptian, Qatar and US intermediaries.

Israel again carried out a total blockade of all aid on March 2, saying it was carried out to pressure the Hamas group to accept the ceasefire's proposal and release all hostages in the Gaza Strip.

Separately, local health authorities confirmed on Sunday that the death toll from Palestinian attacks since October 2023 had risen to 53,939 fatalities, while injuries reached 122,797, the majority of victims were women and children.

According to the same source, the death toll since Israel restarted genocide on March 18 after a two-month ceasefire had also risen to 3,785, in addition to 10,756 others injured.