Washington:
External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar said on Tuesday that India is “very” concerned about the possibility of an expansion of the conflict in the Middle East.
Speaking at the Carnegie Endowment in the US, he termed Hamas' attack on Israel a 'terrorist attack', adding that Israel had the need to respond and adding that India believes that any response from any country international humanitarian law must also be taken into account.
Asked about the escalating violence in the Middle East and India's approach to Israeli policy and broader conflict possibilities, Mr. Jaishankar said: “If you look at the current situation, I think it would be good to start with October 7. as a terrorist attack. We understand that Israel had the need to respond, but we also believe that any response by any country must take into account international humanitarian law, and that the country must be cautious about any harm or impact on the civilian population that, given what happened in Gaza, it is important to have some kind of international humanitarian effort there.”
“And we are very concerned about the possibility of an expansion of the conflict, not only what's happened in Lebanon, but also, you know, I referred earlier to the Houthis and the Red Sea, and, you know, to some extent height, everything that happens between Iran and Israel. So again, it's one thing to be concerned. I'm sure you can say that for many countries, if ultimately we can do something about it, don't underestimate the importance of communication in difficult times. “If there are things that need to be said and passed on, I think these are all contributions we can make and we are doing so,” he added.
India has notably supported a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Prime Minister Narendra Modi was among the first world leaders to condemn the terror attack on Israel by Hamas on October 7.
However, India has repeatedly expressed concern over the deteriorating situation in Gaza.
In October last year, Israel launched a counter-offensive against Hamas after hundreds of Hamas terrorists crossed Israel's borders, killing more than 1,200 people and taking 250 hostages, 100 of whom are still in captivity.
The war has expanded in the region recently, with Houthi rebels in Yemen also targeting Israel and other Red Sea countries. Israel has also continued to attack Hezbollah in Lebanon. As the conflict moves towards escalation, all major countries have called for a ceasefire and a hostage agreement, while also emphasizing a two-state solution as a means to achieve lasting peace in the region.
In a major escalation of the raging conflict in the Middle East, Iran launched a missile attack on Israel on Tuesday. In a statement, the IDF said all Israeli citizens are in bomb shelters as rockets are fired into Israel from Iran.
Hezbollah is angry that the IDF exposed their plans to massacre Israelis, so they decided to target innocent civilians by firing a barrage of rockets, the IDF further said.
According to the Jerusalem Post, 102 rockets have been launched towards Israel. Sirens continue to sound throughout Israel during the attack, the Times of Israel reported. According to the IDF, approximately 10 million civilians have been targeted by Iranian projectiles. Iranian state media also confirmed the Iranian attack on Israel.
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