Israel’s ambassador to the United Nations on Monday accused Turkey of “malice,” after Ankara submitted a letter signed by 52 countries calling for a halt in arms deliveries to Israel over the war in Gaza.
“What else can be expected from a country whose actions are driven by malice in an attempt to create conflicts with the support of the ‘Axis of Evil’ countries,” said Ambassador Danny Danon, using a pejorative term to describe the Arab countries who signed the letter.
Excavators clear rubble and debris at the site of an overnight Israeli air strike on town of Sarafand, between Sidon and Tyre in southern Lebanon, on October 30, 2024. (Photo by Mahmoud ZAYYAT / AFP)
Turkey’s foreign ministry said Sunday it had submitted the letter to the United Nations, with the signatories including the Arab League and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation.
A handout picture provided by the office of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on October 19, 2024, shows him (R) greeting slain Hams leader Yahya Sinwar in Tehran on February 12 2012. – Khamenei said on October 19 that Hamas was alive and will survive despite the death of its leader Yahya Sinwar in an Israeli military operation in Gaza. (Photo by KHAMENEI.IR / AFP) / === RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE – MANDATORY CREDIT “AFP PHOTO / HO / KHAMENEI.IR” – NO MARKETING NO ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS – DISTRIBUTED AS A SERVICE TO CLIENTS ===
Israel has faced international criticism for the conduct of its war in Gaza, where its offensive has killed at least 43,374 people, most of them civilians, according to health ministry figures which the United Nations considers to be reliable.
The war was sparked by Palestinian armed group Hamas’s October 7 attack on Israel, which resulted in the deaths of 1,206 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally of Israeli official figures.
A Palestinian man buys a plastic bag of cold water in Khan Yunis in Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza Strip on October 21, 2024 amid the ongoing war in the Palestinian territory between Israel and Hamas. (Photo by Bashar TALEB / AFP)
“This letter is further proof that the UN is led by some sinister countries and not by the liberal countries that support the values of justice and morality,” said Danon.
Turkey’s letter, seen by AFP Monday, called the “staggering” civilian death toll “unconscionable and intolerable.”
“We therefore make this collective call for immediate steps to be taken to halt the provision or transfer of arms, munitions and related equipment to Israel, the occupying Power, in all cases where there are reasonable grounds to suspect that they may be used in the Occupied Palestinian Territory,” the letter said.
Displaced African migrant workers seek refuge at a warehouse, turned into a shelter by a group of volunteers to house migrant workers who fled Israeli bombardment in southern Lebanon, in the eastern suburbs of Beirut on October 21, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hezbollah. (Photo by Joseph EID / AFP)
It added that the UN Security Council (UNSC) must take steps to ensure compliance with its resolutions “which are being flagrantly violated.”
A Palestinian drinks cold water from a plastic bag in Khan Yunis in Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza Strip on October 21, 2024 amid the ongoing war in the Palestinian territory between Israel and Hamas. (Photo by Bashar TALEB / AFP)
The UNSC called in March for a ceasefire in Gaza, but has struggled to speak with a unified voice on the issue due to the veto wielded by Israel’s key ally, the United States.
Asked about the joint letter on Monday, the spokesman for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said he had not seen it.
Displaced African migrant workers cook a meal at a warehouse, turned into a shelter by a group of volunteers to house migrant workers who fled Israeli bombardment in southern Lebanon, in the eastern suburbs of Beirut on October 21, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hezbollah. (Photo by Joseph EID / AFP)
Displaced African migrant workers seek refuge at a warehouse, turned into a shelter by a group of volunteers to house migrant workers who fled Israeli bombardment in southern Lebanon, in the eastern suburbs of Beirut on October 21, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hezbollah. (Photo by Joseph EID / AFP)
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