ISTANBUL
A vigil Tuesday in Taiwan honored Palestinians killed in the Gaza Strip as regional leader William Lai Ching-te hosted a delegation of Israeli lawmakers.
Taiwanese, foreign nationals, members of the Muslim community as well as human rights groups took part in the vigil on the self-governing island in Taipei, to mourn the Palestinians in Israeli attacks on Gaza, with some engraving the names of the deceased on a banner to commemorate the deaths.
Expressing solidarity with Palestinians, the participants shouted slogans such as "Stop the genocide”, "Abolish Zionism, Free Palestine”, “1,2,3,4, Occupation no more,” and "From the River to Sea, Palestine will be Free,” according to video from the event.
Lai, on the same day, hosted a delegation of Israeli lawmakers, led by parliament member Boaz Toporovsky.
“We look forward to working with Israel on semiconductors, AI, & emerging defense tech to boost innovation & supply chain resilience,” Lai wrote on the US social media company, X.
The developments came after a UN commission said Israel is committing genocide against Palestinians in Gaza.
Israel’s war has killed nearly 65,000 Palestinians since October 2023 and devastated the enclave, which faces famine.
A UN inquiry released Tuesday found that Israel’s war is a genocide.
"It is clear that there is an intent to destroy the Palestinians in Gaza through acts that meet the criteria outlined in the Genocide Convention," said Navi Pillay, chair of the UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory.
Israel is also facing a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war in the territory.
Last month, hundreds of pro-Palestinian activists protested in front of the Foreign Ministry in Taiwan, accusing Taipei’s envoy to Israel of pledging money to a health center inside an Israeli settlement in the occupied West Bank.
Trade between Taiwan and Israel reached $2.67 billion in recent years, with the two sides maintaining representative offices since 1992.
