The Government of Maldives has issued a statement through their Ministry of Foreign Affairs which details their condemnation of the Israeli government’s plan to invade Rafah City in Southern Gaza.
In the statement, the Maldivian Government highlights the humanitarian crisis that is ongoing in the region, noting the large number of refugees that have been displaced within Palestine and have ended up in Rafah.
The statement goes further, saying that the Israeli government’s actions are equivalent to war crimes, and are against International Law. These actions include the merciless slaughter of civilians through indiscriminate bombings, intentional destruction of civilian infrastructure and the obstruction of humanitarian aid entering Palestine.
The Government of Maldives has called on the international community to continue putting pressure on Israel to abide by the ruling reached by the International Court of Justice on the 26th of January, 2024. This includes the prevention of all acts of genocide, working to provide humanitarian aid to Palestinians, and seeking a route for a permanent ceasefire.
Finally, the statement indicates the Maldives’ support for the Palestinian people and their right to Statehood, with an independent Palestinian state based on pre-1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital.
Israel has been conducting a genocide against Palestinians since October 7th of last year, when they used a Hamas attack as an excuse to begin an all out offensive on Palestinians living in Gaza. They have given orders of evacuation for all residents of Northern Gaza, and systematically bombed areas of high population density in the Gaza Strip, resulting in tens of thousands of civilian casualties.