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‘Necessary to stop’: Russia fumes at Israel's 'scorched earth' Gaza bombardment
Israel-Hamas War: Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov said Russia was in close contact with Israel too.
Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov said that Israel's bombardment of Gaza is against international law and risks creating a catastrophe that could last decades. In an interview, the minister said, “While we condemn terrorism, we categorically disagree that you can respond to terrorism by violating the norms of international humanitarian law, including indiscriminately using force against targets where civilians are known to be present, including hostages that have been taken.”
It was impossible, he asserted, to destroy Hamas without destroying Gaza along with most of its civilian population.
"If Gaza is destroyed and 2 million inhabitants are expelled, as some politicians in Israel and abroad propose, this will create a catastrophe for many decades, if not centuries," Sergei Lavrov warned, adding, "It is necessary to stop, and to announce humanitarian programmes to save the population under blockade."
Sergei Lavrov said Russia was in close contact with Israel too.
"We remain in full contact with Israel, and our ambassador is regularly in touch with them," he said, continuing, "We are sending signals about the need to seek a peaceful solution and not to follow through with this announced 'scorched earth' strategy."
This comes as health authorities in Gaza said that 7,326 Palestinians had been killed since Israel's bombardment began. Israel said that Hamas had killed 1,400 Israelis, mostly civilians and also took more than 200 hostages.
What has Russia said earlier on the conflict?
Russia has earlier backed an immediate ceasefire and a two-state solution to the conflict. Moscow also angered Israel by inviting a Hamas delegation to Moscow while the terrorist group has said that it is seeking eight Gaza hostages at Russia's request. Russia's stand comes at a time when the Kyiv and the West have accused Moscow itself of bombing civilians across Ukraine while it has said that it does not deliberately target civilians and only aims at military targets.
