ISTANBUL

Malaysia on Tuesday called for the “immediate implementation of the ceasefire agreement and unimpeded humanitarian access to Gaza.”

“Malaysia underscores the urgent need for the full and immediate implementation of all phases of the ceasefire agreement, including the exchange of hostages and prisoners, as originally agreed by all parties,” the country's Foreign Ministry said on X.

Noting that any “delay or deviation” from the agreement may risk worsening the humanitarian crisis, the statement said: “Adhering to the agreement is essential to ensuring a sustained cessation of hostilities and unhindered delivery of critical humanitarian aid to Gaza.”

The statement underscored that the humanitarian situation in Gaza is deplorable, with “over two million people in urgent need of assistance.”

It said that the aid should reach those that need it “without obstructions and political conditions,” noting that the assistance ought to “remain neutral, impartial, and free from political interference.”

It also called for the “establishment of an independent and sovereign” Palestinian state, with its capital being “East Jerusalem.”

Nearly 48,400 Palestinians have been killed, mostly women and children, and over 111,000 others injured in a brutal Israeli war on Gaza since October 2023.

The onslaught, which left the enclave in ruins, was paused under a ceasefire and prisoner exchange agreement that took hold on Jan. 19.

Israel halted the entry of humanitarian aid into Gaza on Sunday as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu refused to start negotiations on the second phase of a ceasefire deal between Tel Aviv and Hamas.

Last November, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for 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.