NEW YORK/GAZA/KUWAIT: Kuwait’s Permanent Representative at the UN Ambassador Tareq Al-Bannai said regarding the Zionist entity’s brutal aggression on Gaza that Kuwait rejected the displacement of Palestinians out of their lands, calling for an immediate ceasefire and opening of crossings for humanitarian aid. This came during Bannai’s speech on Wednesday before the UN General Assembly’s emergency session regarding the developments in Gaza and the occupation forces’ ongoing violations against Palestinian civilians.

Bannai said the world is witnessing violations of international humanitarian law principles, in addition to UN Security Council, General Assembly and international organizations’ resolutions. He added the severest crime the world is witnessing is the bombing of innocent children, noting that the number of children killed in Gaza since Oct 7 is more than 3,257, according to the British Save the children charity organization, which exceeds the number of children killed annually throughout conflict zones since 2019.

Bannai reviewed some Security Council resolutions condemning acts of violence by the Zionist occupation, calling on all parties to comply with their obligations under international humanitarian law. “We are witnessing shameful media misinformation by the occupation forces, which we respond to with facts that cannot be defeated, as the truth hurts them and the world standing by Palestine terrifies them,” he said.

Bannai stressed the urgent need to implement the Security Council’s resolutions related to protection of civilians, noting that these resolutions detail the violations committed by the occupation forces. He stressed there is no way forward except through comprehensive peace through the implementation of relevant international legitimacy resolutions and the Arab Peace Initiative of 2002, which states the establishment of Palestine with East Jerusalem as its capital.

Bannai concluded by addressing the Zionist occupation: “You only have one option that will rid us of the cycle of violations you imposed 56 years ago, which is ending the occupation and leaving Palestinian occupied territories.”

Meanwhile, the first batch of aid presented by Kuwait Red Crescent Society (KRCS) arrived on Thursday at Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS) warehouses in Gaza. Chief of Palestinian volunteer teams affiliated with the KRCS Ahmad Abu Daya said the KRCS aid, which includes medicine, arrived at PRCS north of Gaza, after crossing the Rafah border on Wednesday.

The medicines will be sorted and distributed to hospitals in the next few hours, Abu Daya told KUNA, noting the Zionist occupation keeps interrupting the delivery process of the rest of the humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip including medical equipment and ambulances. He added the KRCS aid provided to Gaza comes as part of Kuwait’s relief air bridge, which has been maintained for more than 10 days now, carrying 10 tons of medicine and more than six ambulances provided by KRCS and Kuwaiti charities.

Kuwaiti Deputy Prime Minster and Minister of Defense Sheikh Ahmad Al-Fahad Al-Sabah received on Thursday a phone call from US Secretary of Defense Lloyd J Austin to discuss the latest developments in Palestine. In a press release, the ministry of defense said that both sides discussed bilateral ties, ways to enhance cooperation between Kuwait and the US, topics of common interests and the latest regional and international developments. During the phone call, Sheikh Ahmad affirmed the necessity for immediate action to lift the siege on Gaza, to end the unjustified military operations and work on facilitating the entry of humanitarian aid to the Palestinian people.

Also on Thursday, Minister of Foreign Affairs Sheikh Salem Al-Abdullah Al-Sabah left Kuwait for Russia on an official visit. The minister and his accompanying delegation will hold multiple meetings with officials in Moscow to strengthen bilateral ties between both sides. In the meetings, both sides will discuss several vital topics and issues regionally and internationally, especially developments in the region. – KUNA