China supports Palestine’s full UN membership bid, says foreign minister

ANKARA

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Thursday said his country supports Palestine’s bid for full UN membership.

The UN Security Council will vote on Thursday on a draft resolution for Palestine to become a full UN member.

The resolution requires nine votes in favor to pass with a condition that none of the five permanent members - the US, the UK, France, Russia and China - votes against.

The Palestinians are currently a non-member observer state, a de facto recognition of statehood that was granted by the 193-member UN General Assembly in 2012.

"The Israeli-Palestinian conflict has caused a humanitarian disaster," state-run Global Times quoted Wang as saying.

He called for an “immediate and unconditional” cease-fire and the swift establishment of a humanitarian aid mechanism to prevent further escalation.

The Palestinian application for full UN membership came amid a deadly Israeli offensive on the Gaza Strip, which has killed nearly 33,900 people since an Oct. 7 Hamas attack, which claimed 1,200 lives.

The Israeli war has pushed 85% of Gaza’s population into internal displacement amid acute shortages of food, clean water, and medicine, while over 60% of the enclave's infrastructure has been damaged or destroyed, according to the UN.

Israel is accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice. An interim ruling in January ordered Tel Aviv to ensure its forces do not commit acts of genocide, and guarantee that humanitarian assistance is provided to civilians in Gaza.

*Writing by Islamuddin Sajid