Post #2118

🎙Excerpt from the interview by Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov for RT's “Bridges to the East” project(Moscow, October 8, 2025) Key points on #Palestine: • The unresolved Palestinian issue, persisting for nearly 80 years, continues to be a key factor fueling extremism in the Middle East. • The death toll [in Gaza], according to official data alone, stands at 65,000 people over the two years. The vast majority are civilians – women, children, and the elderly. 170,000 have been wounded. Hundreds of thousands have lost their homes. • We strongly condemned the terrorist attack carried out by Hamas against civilians on October 7, 2023. 1,200 people were killed, dozens were taken hostage. That was a crime. But collective punishment of the entire Palestinian people for such attacks is also a gross violation of international humanitarian law. • US President Donald Trump has proposed his “20 Points”, which mention the word “statehood”. However, everything is formulated in rather general terms – in a way that only refers to what will remain of the Gaza Strip. The West Bank is not mentioned. But we are realists and understand that this is the best proposal currently “on the table”. • Trump’s plan is realistic if it is accepted by the Palestinians. We certainly wish success to the indirect talks currently taking place in Egypt with the participation of Turkey, Egypt, Qatar, the US, and, naturally, Israel. They are negotiating with Hamas through intermediaries. It is crucial to stop all hostilities. The fact that Hamas emphasizes guarantees to prevent renewed strikes and hostilities in Gaza, especially in Gaza City, reflects that they are drawing lessons from the previous experience. • Our Western colleagues must bear their share of responsibility for having played a leading role in stalling decisions on the creation of an independent Palestine in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. 📄Read the full interview