Staff Correspondent:

The Bangladesh government has expressed its strongest condemnation of the “Israeli Occupying Forces’ continued mass killing and gross violations of human rights in the Gaza Strip”, saying it amounted to ethnic cleansing.

Amid countrywide protests against Israeli occupation, the foreign ministry on Monday (April 7) issued a statement on its Facebook page saying Israel’s ongoing military attacks since last month’s unilateral breach of the ceasefire had killed scores of Palestinians, mostly women and children as well as blocked the entry of humanitarian aid into Gaza leading to a human catastrophe.

“Evidently, Israel has shown no regard to repeated international appeals and has instead engaged in an increasingly intense killing spree,” it said.

It strongly denounced the actions of Israel, forces of which, it said, had “intention of carrying out ethnic cleansing against the defenseless Palestinian population”.

“The Government of Bangladesh demands that Israel immediately cease all military operations, exercise maximum restraint, and abide by its duty under international humanitarian law.”

Bangladesh also appealed to the international community, in particular the United Nations, to discharge its moral and legal responsibilities by adopting immediate and effective steps towards the implementation of an unconditional ceasefire and the cessation of all hostilities for the protection of lives of civilians and unobstructed passage of humanitarian relief to besieged Gaza.

“The Ministry of Foreign Affairs reaffirms the strong support of the Government of Bangladesh for all the just rights of the Palestinian people, their right to self-determination and to the establishment of an independent and sovereign State of Palestine based on pre-1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital.”

Bangladesh stressed that it remained steadfast and unequivocal in its call on the global community to work towards a two state solution of the Palestinian issue based on international law, United Nations resolutions, and the Palestinian aspirations for peace, dignity, and justice.