Crown Prince Mohammed and King Abdullah spoke about the necessity of finding a political solution to the Palestinian crisis based on the two-state solution, which guarantees the establishment of an independent, sovereign Palestinian state…reports Asian Lite News
Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Jordan’s King Abdullah II yesterday engaged in discussions regarding regional developments, particularly focusing on the Middle East and Gaza.
The crown prince expressed Saudi Arabia’s support for the measures taken by the Jordanian government to maintain Jordan’s security and stability, the Saudi Press Agency reported, and the king expressed his appreciation for Saudi Arabia’s supportive stance.
Prince Mohammed and the king spoke about the necessity of finding a political solution to the Palestinian crisis based on the two-state solution, which guarantees the establishment of an independent, sovereign Palestinian state along 1967 borders and with East Jerusalem as its capital, the Jordanian news agency Petra reported.
The crown prince and King Abdullah also discussed relations between the Kingdom and Jordan. The king expressed to Prince Mohammed “his pride in the level of Jordanian-Saudi relations, and his keenness to consolidate them in all fields,” Petra said.
Earlier, Secretary General of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Jasem Mohamed Albudaiwi urged the international community to act to end the crisis in Gaza Strip and stop the dangerous Israeli aggression, which has violated all international charters, treaties, and agreements.
Via an audiovisual call at the European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR) with EU Special Representative for the Gulf Region Luigi di Maio and several other European officials and senior specialists in international relations about the situation in Gaza Strip and the future of Gulf-European ties in light of the current geopolitical challenges, Albudaiwi stressed that the dangerous situation in Gaza has led to growing instability in the region and the world, with grave repercussions, and that global cooperation is needed to stop this crisis.
He also said that it is crucial to provide urgent humanitarian and relief support to Palestinians in Gaza Strip.
Albudaiwi praised the progress made in all aspects of Gulf-European relations, and stressed that it is important to increase dialogue and cooperation to address common challenges and support stability in the region.
He further highlighted the numerous promising opportunities to establish a solid strategic partnership by bolstering Gulf-European relations, saying that continued discussions and dialogue help facilitate the exchange of views and promote mutual understanding, and contribute to achieving security and stability.
IDF presses offensive in Khan Yunis
Israel continued to press its offensive against Hamas in Khan Yunis. The forces struck militant infrastructure in the city’s Al Amal and ‘Abasan al Jadida neighbourhoods, killing militants with tank fire and seizing weapons.
Khan Yunis, Gaza’s second-largest city, is widely regarded as a personal stronghold of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar.
After numerous rocket launches were identified crossing from Gaza into Israel on Wednesday, the IDF struck the sources of the fire along with additional launchers and militant infrastructure.
Meanwhile, US President Joe Biden on Thursday told Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that America’s support of Israel’s war in Gaza would be determined by the latter announcing and implementing a “series of specific, concrete, and measurable steps to address civilian harm, humanitarian suffering, and the safety of aid workers”.
The US President also called for an “immediate ceasefire” to stabilize and improve the humanitarian situation there.
The two leaders spoke on the phone amidst growing outrage around the world over the killing of six aid workers of Spanish American chef and restaurateur Jose Andres’s World Central Kitchen.
Earlier, the Israel Defence Forces apologized for the attack, saying the strike resulted from a “misidentification.”
Seven workers from the World Central Kitchen were killed on Monday night when their convoy delivering food was struck in Deir al-Balah. The incident led the US-based organization to suspend its operations in Gaza.
“I want to be very clear–the strike was not carried out with the intention of harming WCK aid workers. It was a mistake that followed a misidentification–at night during a war in very complex conditions. It shouldn’t have happened,” said IDF Chief of Staff Lt.-Gen. Herzi Halevi in a video statement.
“This incident was a grave mistake. Israel is at war with Hamas, not with the people of Gaza,” Halevi asserted. “We are sorry for the unintentional harm to the members of WCK.”
Halevi said the incident would be independently investigated with the findings to be presented “in the coming days.”
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