Islamuddin Sajid
18 October 2023•Update: 18 October 2023
ISLAMABAD
Pakistan, Malaysia, Indonesia and Afghanistan on Wednesday condemned the Israeli airstrike on a hospital in Gaza that killed hundreds of civilians, mostly children and women.
Pakistan’s caretaker Prime Minister Anwaarul Haq Kakar called on the international community to hold those responsible for this indefensible act "accountable."
"Strongly condemn the Israeli attack on Al-Ahly Al-Mamadany Hospital in Gaza, causing immense civilian casualties. Targeting a hospital, a sanctuary for those in need, is an indefensible act of inhumanity. International humanitarian law gives protection to hospitals and medical personnel," Kakar, who is currently in Beijing to attend the 3rd Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation, said on X.
He added that he spoke with the UN chief Antonio Guterres and urged him that the global community should ask Israel to stop killing innocent Palestinians.
Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim described the Gaza bombing as an “insane and inhuman act” and condemned Israel.
“Whatever the accusation is, it has resulted in attacks and war. That's why we say it has to stop,” Bernama news agency quoted Ibrahim as saying.
Indonesia’s Foreign Ministry also condemned the Israeli attack on the hospital in Gaza and said Israel clearly violated international humanitarian law.
“Injustice against the Palestinian people has been going on for a very long time and is still happening today. It is time for the world to prioritize the creation of a just peace for Palestine. Implementation of agreed international parameters can no longer be postponed,” said the ministry on X.
The Afghan Taliban interim administration also condemned the Israeli bombing of Gaza hospital and called it a “war crime.”
In a statement, the Afghan Foreign Ministry said Israeli forces committed crimes against humanity and said the perpetrators must be brought to justice.
“The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan is calling on the peoples and governments of the whole world, human rights organizations, the United Nations and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation to do everything possible to prevent Israel's atrocities as condemnations are not enough,” said Abdul Qahar Balkhi, spokesman for the ministry.
More than 500 people were killed in an Israeli airstrike on Al-Ahli Baptist Hospital in Gaza on Tuesday, Health Ministry spokesman Ashraf al-Qudra told Anadolu.
Footage on social media showed corpses scattered across the hospital grounds.
According to an Anadolu reporter, thousands of Palestinians, including women and children, were at the hospital when the building came under bombardment.
