By Mike Brest, Defense Reporter. Media: Washingtonexaminer
Israeli leaders reportedly rejected a request from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to make a visit of solidarity to the country as its people are reeling from the worst terrorist attack in the country’s history.
Zelensky’s office had sent a request to the Israeli prime minister’s office, according to Axios, though the offer was rebuffed, per ynetnews, an Israeli news outlet.
Last week, the Ukrainian president gave his verbal support to Israel following the unprecedented terrorist attack that left roughly 1,300 people dead, and harkened back to the beginning of Russia’s invasion of his own country in February 2022.
“In the face of such a terrorist strike, everyone who values life must stand in solidarity. … Israel has the full right to defend itself against terror,” he said in a statement after the attack.
Israel has provided Ukraine with humanitarian aid but has refused to give them weapons, presumably to avoid intensifying the tension between Israel and Russia’s military presence in Syria. Israeli leaders have also expressed concern with the possibility of their weaponry ultimately falling into Iranian hands. Tehran and Moscow have strengthened their military cooperation since the war began, with Iran providing Russia with hundreds of kamikaze one-way drones that Russia used primarily to target Ukrainian infrastructure.
Russian President Vladimir Putin had a call with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday, according to a Kremlin readout.
“Vladimir Putin laid out the steps being taken by Russia to help normalize the situation, prevent further escalation of violence and avert a humanitarian catastrophe in the Gaza Strip. In particular, the Israeli side was informed of the key points of today’s telephone calls with the leaders of Palestine, Egypt, Iran and Syria,” the readout said. “Russia’s principled commitment to continue its work to end the Palestinian-Israeli conflict and achieve a peaceful settlement by political and diplomatic means was reaffirmed.”
Israeli leaders have said they plan on eradicating Hamas, though so far their military campaign in Gaza has resulted in approximately 2,700 deaths, many of which were civilians. The Israelis have urged Palestinians who live in the northern half of Gaza, roughly 1.1 million people, to evacuate south, but it’s not clear where they will all go due to the density of the strip and the restrictions of movement placed against them. The United Nations said the evacuation order was “impossible.”
During Putin’s call with Presidents Bashar Assad of Syria, Ebrahim Raisi of Iran, Mahmoud Abbas of the Palestinian Authority, and Abdel Fattah el-Sisi of Egypt, “they unanimously agreed on the need to immediately cease fire and to establish a humanitarian truce in order to provide urgent help to those in need,” a readout of the call said. Putin also “emphasized the unacceptability of using any form of violence against civilians,” a stunning comment given the Russian military has murdered nearly 10,000 civilians since they invaded Ukraine, according to data released by the United Nations last month.
Russia’s deputy foreign minister provided an update on the war to Putin and other top Russian defense leaders on Monday, and he accused the Israeli military of taking “indiscriminate” action in Gaza.
“In our assessment, the situation in the Middle East conflict zone is tending to get worse,” Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said, according to a Kremlin readout. “The operations undertaken by the Israeli military are indiscriminate. There remains the looming threat of a ground operation encompassing an incursion into Gaza. This enclave and its residents are now facing a humanitarian crisis. They are not receiving medical assistance and their essential needs are not being met, which is causing substantial concern around the world.”
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