Russia 'disappointed' by Israel’s decision to step up military activity in Gaza Strip
Launch of large-scale military operation has led to rise in civilian deaths, says Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman
MOSCOW
Russia is "disappointed" by Israel’s decision to intensify military activity in the Gaza Strip and launch a large-scale land operation, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said Tuesday.
Speaking at a press briefing in Moscow, she emphasized that the intensity of rocket and bomb strikes has sharply increased, resulting in a rise in civilian casualties.
"Reports indicate that approximately 300 people have been killed in attacks on social facilities and sites housing internally displaced persons in various parts of the Palestinian enclave over the past three days. We are disappointed by this decision of the Israeli authorities, which inevitably leads to further loss of innocent lives and new destruction," she stressed.
Zakharova argued that the only path to normalizing the situation in Gaza is through shifting the conflict’s resolution to a political and diplomatic framework.
"To achieve this, it is necessary to ensure a complete ceasefire and restore humanitarian aid to the population of the Gaza Strip, creating conditions for restarting the political process aimed at finding a fair and long-term solution to the Palestinian problem on internationally recognized legal foundations," she said.
Zakharova said that Russia is actively and consistently pursuing the earliest achievement of these goals in close cooperation with partners and like-minded entities, both bilaterally and through international organizations, primarily the UN.
At least 53,573 Palestinians have been killed in Israel’s genocidal war since October 2023, the Health Ministry said Tuesday.
The Israeli army resumed its assaults on the Gaza Strip on March 18 and has since killed 3,427 people and injured 9,647 others, shattering a ceasefire and prisoner exchange agreement that took hold in January.
Last November, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.
Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on the enclave.
