Palestine Ambassador to Zimbabwe Dr Tamer Almassri
By George Swarei
The Palestinian Embassy in Harare has issued a strong condemnation of what it describes as Israel’s widening aggression, accusing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of expanding “genocidal” actions to the West Bank and Lebanon. The statement comes amid growing tensions in the region, with the Palestinian leadership warning of the potential for a comprehensive regional war.
“The embassy of the State of Palestine condemns Israel’s expansion of its aggression on Palestine and Lebanon, pushing the region towards the abyss of a comprehensive regional war,” said Ambassador Tamer Almassri. He stressed that Israel’s military actions, now encompassing Gaza, the West Bank, and Lebanon, stem from the international community’s failure to act decisively.
According to the ambassador, the world’s inability to halt Israel’s bombardment of Gaza has emboldened the Israeli government to continue what he labeled as systematic crimes.
Palestine has called for urgent international intervention, specifically demanding that the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) and the International Criminal Court (ICC) act swiftly to address what it describes as “war crimes” committed by Israeli forces.
The embassy’s statement also referenced ongoing ICC investigations into crimes against Palestinians, including violations against detainees, the killing of civilians, and actions classified as colonial terrorism.
Ambassador Almassri directly accused Netanyahu of using military escalation to divert attention from his legal troubles. The Israeli leader is currently embroiled in a corruption scandal, which the Palestinian diplomat said Netanyahu is trying to “escape” by expanding the conflict to the West Bank and Lebanon.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian also addressed the situation during a visit to New York for the U.N. General Assembly, emphasizing that Iran does not seek to widen the war. “We don’t want war. We want to live in peace,” Pezeshkian told reporters on Monday. However, he warned that further Israeli aggression could destabilize the entire Middle East. “A wider conflict in the region will have no winners,” he said, reiterating Iran’s commitment to supporting the Palestinian cause while urging a resolution through diplomatic means.
This latest escalation has sparked significant international concern, with human rights organizations and world leaders cautioning that the violence risks spiraling into a broader regional war. Observers point to a growing humanitarian crisis in Gaza, where thousands of civilians have been displaced or killed, and warn that an expansion of the conflict could exacerbate instability in an already volatile region.
International bodies, including the European Union and UN-affiliated organizations, have repeatedly called for a ceasefire, though efforts to broker peace have thus far proven unsuccessful.
The Palestinian statement, supported by warnings from Iran and other regional actors, underscores the pressing need for international action to prevent the situation from deteriorating further.
Many analysts believe that Netanyahu’s approach to the Gaza conflict and now the broader region could invite harsher scrutiny from the international community, particularly amid rising calls for war crime investigations by the ICC. As the world watches, the situation in Palestine and Lebanon grows increasingly dire, with fears that the conflict may soon engulf neighboring nations.
