Will continue to send humanitarian aid to Palestinian people: PM Modi

New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Thursday to convey condolences over the loss of civilian lives at the Al Ahli Hospital in Gaza City and promised to continue humanitarian aid to the people of Palestine.

It was their first phone conversation since the October 7 Hamas attack on Israel settlements and the retaliatory Israeli strikes that have sent tensions soaring across West Asia.

“Spoke to the President of the Palestinian Authority H.E. Mahmoud Abbas. Conveyed my condolences at the loss of civilian lives at the Al Ahli Hospital in Gaza. We will continue to send humanitarian assistance to the Palestinian people. Shared our deep concern at the terrorism, violence and deteriorating security situation in the region. Reiterated India’s long-standing principled position on the Israel-Palestine issue,” Modi wrote on X.

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The Palestinian authorities have blamed an Israeli missile strike for the deaths at the Al Ahli Hospital while Israel has denied the accusations.

“Civilian casualties in the ongoing conflict are a matter of serious and continuing concern. Those involved should be held responsible,” the Prime Minister had said in a post on X, condoling the deaths in the hospital blast.

Modi’s call to Abbas came days after he spoke to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to extend solidarity.

On October 10, Modi thanked Netanyahu “for his phone call and providing an update on the ongoing situation” and said “people of India stand in solidarity with Israel in this difficult hour” while also adding that “India strongly and unequivocally condemns terrorism in all its forms and manifestations”.

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