Saudi calls for immediate halt to Israeli-Palestinian escalation

Saudi Arabia has called for an immediate halt to the escalation between the Israel-Palestinian escalation.

The Saudi Foreign Ministry said in an official statement statement that “The Kingdom is closely following developments in the unprecedented situation between a number of Palestinian factions and the Israeli occupation forces, which has resulted in a high level of violence taking place on a number of fronts there.”

#Statement | The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is closely following the developments of the unprecedented situation between a number of Palestinian factions and the Israeli occupation forces, which has resulted in a high level of violence on several fronts there. pic.twitter.com/KEFsNB5ZVb

— Foreign Ministry 🇸🇦 (@KSAmofaEN) October 7, 2023

Saudi Arabia called for “an immediate halt to the escalation between the two sides, the protection of civilians, and the exercise of restraint.”

It is pertinent to mention here that the Palestinian group Hamas launched the biggest attack on Israel in years in a surprise assault that combined gunmen crossing into several Israeli towns with a heavy barrage of rockets fired from the Gaza Strip.

Mohammad Deif, a senior Hamas military commander, announced the start of the operation in a broadcast on Hamas media, calling on Palestinians everywhere to fight, Reuters reported.

“This is the day of the greatest battle to end the last occupation on earth,” he said, adding that 5,000 rockets had been launched.

Ghazi Hamad, Hamas spokesperson and former deputy foreign minister for the government in Gaza, has told Al Jazeera that the Palestinian operation is also a message to Arab countries who have been normalising relations with Israel.

As warning sirens wailed across southern and central Israel, including in Jerusalem, Israel’s military said it was on a war footing and the defence minister said that Hamas had made a “grave mistake” by declaring war on Israel.

The Israeli military said it had launched air strikes into Gaza, where witnesses reported hearing heavy explosions

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said he would meet top security officials in the coming hours and Gallant authorised the call-up of reservists.