Singapore has consistently held the view that Israeli settlements are illegal under international law, and has voted in support of United Nations (UN) resolutions that reject Israeli settlement activities and call on Israel to “rescind all unilateral measures” seeking to change the status of Jerusalem, he added.
“We call on the Israeli government to cease settlement construction and expansion. We oppose ongoing attempts to create new facts on the ground which undermine the prospects for a two-state solution.”
Israel’s actions in Gaza have gone too far for too long, said Dr Balakrishnan.
“Israel’s military operations, which have recently intensified in Gaza City, have exacerbated the prolonged, desperate suffering of innocent civilians. This is unconscionable,” he said.
The scale of civilian death is “harrowing”, with more than 60,000 people have reportedly been killed, a third of them children. “Singapore condemns the killing of innocent civilians,” Dr Balakrishnan said.
The humanitarian situation in Gaza is “shocking”, the foreign affairs minister added, noting that Gaza is dangerously close to famine levels, which was “entirely preventable”.
“The deliberate and unlawful denial of humanitarian aid to a civilian population is completely unacceptable,” he added.
“In our view, these excessive actions by the Israeli government may even be a breach of international humanitarian law.”
Currently, the Palestinian Authority administers the Occupied Palestinian Territories in the West Bank, but does not control Gaza, said Dr Balakrishnan, noting that Hamas “violently seized” Gaza from the Palestinian Authority in June 2007.
There has not been a unified Palestinian government that exercises “effective control” in Palestinian territories, including both the West Bank and Gaza for the last 18 years at least, he added. “What will happen in Gaza after the ceasefire is unclear.”
Hamas has also consistently rejected Israel’s right to exist, said the foreign affairs minister, adding that it has yet to renounce terrorism or agree to disarm.
Singapore enjoys good relations with the Palestinian Authority, and welcomes its commitment to renounce terrorism, carry out reforms and disarm Hamas, said Dr Balakrishnan.
Singapore has also “consistently” affirmed the right of the Palestinian people to self-determination and their own state, as seen in the country’s voting record at the UN, he noted.
“However, it remains to be seen whether the Palestinian Authority can really disarm and displace Hamas from Gaza.”
