China 'strongly condemns' perpetrators of mass graves in Gaza hospitals

ISTANBUL

China on Monday “strongly condemned” perpetrators of mass graves found in hospitals in the besieged Palestinian enclave of Gaza.

“We are deeply shocked and strongly condemn the perpetrators of the atrocity,” said Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian, responding to questions about the discovery of mass graves.

The Gaza Civil Defense Agency said last week that it uncovered 392 bodies in three mass graves at Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis in southern Gaza.

Israel has waged a brutal offensive on the Palestinian enclave since a cross-border attack by the Palestinian group Hamas on Oct. 7 last year, which Tel Aviv says killed nearly 1,200 people.

Nearly 34,500 Palestinians have since been killed, mostly women and children, and over 77,600 others injured amid mass destruction and severe shortages of necessities.

Without naming a country, Beijing said “(the) relevant country must no longer turn a deaf ear to the call for justice from people with conscience across the world,” according to a transcript of a news conference by the ministry.

“It must no longer talk about the need of a ceasefire while pouring weapons into the conflict, and talk about aid while creating obstacles for humanitarian access,” said ministry spokesman Lin.

More than six months into the Israeli war, vast swathes of Gaza lay in ruins, pushing 85% of the enclave’s population into internal displacement amid a crippling blockade of food, clean water, and medicine, according to the UN.

Israel stands accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice. An interim ruling in January ordered Tel Aviv to stop genocidal acts and take measures to guarantee that humanitarian assistance is provided to civilians in Gaza.

“A humanitarian catastrophe that should never have happened continues to unfold before our eyes,” said Lin, adding that the “biggest imperative is to put in place a ceasefire as soon as possible.”

“This is the number one overriding priority in Gaza,” he added.

Beijing reiterated its call for a “more broad-based, more authoritative and more effective international peace conference to set a timetable and a roadmap for the two-state solution.”