Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said that the country decided to no longer accept Israel-flagged ships to dock in the country.
The statement said Israel is committing “massacre and brutality” against Palestinians.
In addition, Malaysia will also impose “a ban on any ship en route to Israel from loading cargo at Malaysian ports”.
Malaysia said it will also block Israel-based ZIM Integrated Shipping Services from anchoring at any of the Southeast Asian nation’s ports.
“Both of these restrictions are effective immediately.”
In the same context, amuch anticipated UN Security Council vote calling for a ‘cessation of hostilities’ in Gaza is set to take place on Wednesday morning New York Time having been postponed two times due to American resistance to the precise wording.
As fierce negotiations continue at the UN the Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh is scheduled to visit Egypt on Wednesday for discussions regarding a truce in Gaza and a potential prisoner exchange with Israel, according to a source familiar with the group.
Whereas in Gaza, Israeli bombardment continues to take a toll on the Strip. Over the past ten weeks, Al-Awda Hospital has been “besieged” and damaged in strikes, said Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF).
The death toll in Gaza is also expected to surpass 20,000 later today or tomorrow.
Haniyeh in Cairo
Hamas Chief Ismail Haniyeh is scheduled to visit Egypt on Wednesday for discussions regarding a truce in Gaza and a potential prisoner exchange with Israel, according to a source familiar with the group, AFP reported.
Haniyeh, who is based in Qatar, will lead a prominent Hamas delegation to Egypt, where he is expected to engage in discussions with Egyptian intelligence head Abbas Kamel, among others, AFP reported on Tuesday.
The discussions will be “on stopping the aggression and the war to prepare an agreement for the release of prisoners [and] the end of the siege imposed on the Gaza Strip,” the source told AFP.
Humanitarian crisis
A UN official has announced that the limited aid to Gaza falls short amid humanitarian crisis.
Israel’s measures to permit aid entry into Gaza are “far short of what is needed,” senior United Nations official Tor Wennesland said on Tuesday.
“The delivery of humanitarian aid in the [Gaza] Strip continues to face nearly insurmountable challenges,” Wennesland, the organisation’s special coordinator for the Middle East peace process said.
“Amid displacement at an unimaginable scale and active hostilities, the humanitarian response system is on the brink. Limited steps by Israel… are positive, but fall far short of what is needed to address the human catastrophe on the ground.”
