China’s Foreign Minister says Israel must stop “incitements and provocations” against Palestinians, particularly in al-Quds amid rise in tensions in the occupied Palestinian territories.
Qin Gang said, “We urge the Israeli side to stop incitement and provocations and to avoid any unilateral move that may aggravate the situation.”
He made the remarks at a joint press conference with his Egyptian counterpart in Cairo.
Over the past months, Israel has ramped up attacks on Palestinian towns and cities throughout the occupied territories. As a result of these attacks, dozens of Palestinians have lost their lives and many others have been arrested.
The United Nations has marked 2022 as the deadliest year for Palestinians in the West Bank in 16 years.
Israeli forces killed at least 171 Palestinians in the West Bank and occupied East al-Quds last year, including more than 30 children. At least 9,000 others were injured as well.
Qin Gang reiterated that, “China’s President Xi Jinping has recently stressed that the historic oppression the Palestinian people are subjected to should not continue indefinitely and that the Palestinians’ legitimate, national rights should not be compromised.”
He also urged the international community to push for “peace negotiations” between the Palestinians and Israelis and to find a “just and urgent solution to the Palestinian cause based on the two-state solution.”
Palestinians say they want the West Bank as part of a future independent Palestinian state, with East al-Quds as its capital. The last round of Israeli-Palestinian talks collapsed in 2014. Among the major sticking points in those negotiations was Israel’s continued illegal settlement expansion.