GAZA: The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) on Wednesday expressed deep concerns over the violent protests at the border of the Gaza Strip, which has claimed over 50 lives.
The MEA also called for a conducive atmosphere to resume the peace process between Israel and Palestine.
In a statement, the MEA spokesperson Raveesh Kumar said, “India is deeply concerned with continuing tensions on the border between Gaza strip and Israel where more than 50 Palestinian nationals lost their lives and thousands injured on 14th of May. We are deeply saddened by the loss of lives. We urge all sides to avoid escalation of the situation so as to create a conducive atmosphere to resume the peace process.”
So far, 62 Palestinians have been killed and thousands were injured in violent clashes with Israeli forces along the Gaza border since Monday, in what was the deadliest escalation of violence in the region since 2014.
A large number of Palestinians gathered to protest on the Gaza Strip’s eastern border to commemorate the Nakba anniversary and protest the relocation of the US embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, which overturned decades of American foreign policy.
May 15 marks the so-called Nakba Day (‘Catastrophe’ in Arabic), which commemorates the 70th anniversary of the Palestinian exodus that resulted from Israel’s declaration of independence in 1948.
The protests are also a part of the “Great March of Return”, wherein the Palestinian protesters have asserted that they want to return to their ancestors’ homes in Israel when they were displaced during the war between Israel and Palestine in 1948.
Many countries condemned the violent protests and called for international action against the “massacre committed by the Israeli soldiers.”
Earlier on Tuesday, the United Nations had called for an emergency meeting to discuss the outcome of the ongoing Gaza border protests.
ANI