Costa Rica condemned the escalation of violence between Israel and Palestine and urged to stop the attacks immediately. “All parties to the conflict must fully comply with their international obligations regarding the protection of civilians, as well as provide attention to the humanitarian emergency,” the Tico Foreign Ministry said in a press release.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs added that “as expressed on May 11th, 2021, Costa Rica reiterates that only through dialogue, direct negotiations and in accordance with International Law and compliance with the resolutions of the Security Council of the UN, coexsistence will be achieved, side by side, of two independent states, Israel and Palestine, with secure and mutually recognized borders.” This is the first pronouncement of the Foreign Ministry regarding the escalation of attacks in the Middle East.
Despite international calls for de-escalation, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has warned that his army will inflict “serious setbacks” on the “terrorist” movement Hamas, which controls the Gaza enclave. “They are paying it and they are going to continue paying dearly. It has not finished yet,” he stressed.
Humanitarian disaster
Since Monday, at least 139 Palestinians have lost their lives, including 39 minors, and 1,000 have been injured, according to the latest balance by the Palestinian authorities. This Israeli operation is the most important since the 2014 war with the Islamist movement in Gaza, and was launched after Hamas fired a barrage of rockets at Israel as a show of its “solidarity” with the Palestinian uprising on the Esplanade of the Mosques, in East Jerusalem.
Since then, more than 2,300 rockets have been fired from the Gaza Strip into Israel, killing 10 people, including a minor and a soldier, and injuring 560. According to the army, the “Iron Dome” has intercepted more than half of the projectiles.
