-- Eight days have passed since clashes between Palestinians and Israelis ignited the region's most violent conflict in seven years, yet both sides showed no sign of a ceasefire.
-- The fighting could unleash uncontainable security and humanitarian crisis and further foster extremism, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned, calling for an immediate end to the cycle of bloodshed, terror and destruction.
-- Countries around the world pleaded for an immediate end to the hostilities, echoing the UN chief's remarks made at a UN Security Council open debate.
-- Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi has put forth a four-point proposal for putting an end to the conflict.
GAZA/JERUSALEM, May 18 (Xinhua) -- As private cars and ambulances keep bringing in Palestinians critically wounded by Israeli airstrikes, hospitals in the Gaza Strip come to their rescue despite bombing perils, power outages and dwindling supplies.
Bulk of patients face "serious complications" due to shrapnel wounds, said Marwa Abu Saada, director surgeon at the Shifa Medical Complex, a major hospital in Gaza, as the conflict between Palestine and Israel is spiraling out of control.
Explosions are seen following Israeli air strikes in Gaza City, May 18, 2021. (Photo by Rizek Abdeljawad/Xinhua)
"NO SAFE PLACE IN GAZA"
Eight days have passed since clashes between Palestinians and Israelis at the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in East Jerusalem over a court ruling of residential eviction ignited the region's most violent conflict in seven years, yet both Israel and the Hamas-ruled Gaza showed no sign of a ceasefire.
Till Monday, 204 Palestinians, including 59 children, and at least 10 Israelis, have been killed and over 1,500 wounded in the conflict.
Over 3,200 rockets have been fired to Israel from the Gaza Strip, of which about 460 were misfired and fell in Gaza. Israel's military said its Iron Dome Air Defense System has intercepted 90 percent of the rockets.
Meanwhile, Israel has dispatched thousands of reservists, threatening to wage a ground operation against Gaza.
Main streets in northern and eastern Gaza are packed with Palestinians fleeing from Israel's airstrikes. Some have to trek long distance to take refuge, others risk COVID-19 infections in crowded bomb shelters.
"I am worried about my children and grandchildren. The Israelis are bombing heavily ... There is no safe place in Gaza," said Najah Abu Salem, a woman in her 60s, before squeezing into a car carrying her family away from home.
A burnt car is seen after a rocket from the Gaza Strip landed in southern Israeli city of Ashkelon, on May 11, 2021. (Tomer Neuberg/JINI via Xinhua)
Warning that the fighting could unleash uncontainable security and humanitarian crisis and to further foster extremism, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Sunday called for an immediate stop to the senseless cycle of bloodshed, terror and destruction.
"Fighting must stop. It must stop immediately. Rockets and mortars on one side and aerial and artillery bombardments on the other must stop. I appeal to all parties to heed this call," Guterres said.
OUTCRY AGAINST VIOLENCE
Countries around the world also pleaded for an immediate end to the hostilities, echoing the UN chief's remarks made in Sunday's UN Security Council open debate on the current situation.
The armed confrontation must end, said Russian Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs Sergey Vershinin, who condemned the use of force and violence against civilians in Israel and Palestine and the attempts to change the demographic character of East Jerusalem.
Escalating conflict could pose a serious threat to the "fragile security system" of the region, the Kremlin said Monday.
Palestinian people, who fled their homes due to Israeli air and artillery strikes, take refuge at a school in the southern Gaza Strip city of Rafah, May 17, 2021. (Photo by Khaled Omar/Xinhua)
On Monday night, Israel fired artillery rounds into southern Lebanon, after six rockets were fired from Lebanon toward Israel but fell short within Lebanese territory. Three days earlier, three rockets were fired from Syria toward northern Israel.
Worrying about serious humanitarian consequences and imminent potentials of violence spilling into wider region, countries including Jordan, Egypt, France and China also urged a prompt end to the tension.
During the Sunday debate, Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi put forth a four-point proposal: First, ceasefire and cessation of violence is the top priority; second, humanitarian assistance is an urgent need; third, international support is an obligation; fourth, a "two-state solution" is the fundamental way out.
An Israeli government spokesperson told Xinhua on Tuesday that it will reopen Gaza's main cargo crossing for hours to allow the transfer of the humanitarian aid of gas, food and medicine.
A Palestinian man inspects a damaged building after an Israeli air strike in Gaza City, on May 17, 2021. (Photo by Rizek Abdeljawad/Xinhua)
CHINA PUSHES FOR PEACE TALKS
"China will continue to intensify efforts promote peace talks, and fulfil its duties as the rotating presidency of the UN Security Council," said Wang.
China reiterates its invitation to peacemakers from Palestine and Israel to hold dialogue in China, and welcomes negotiators from the two sides to hold direct talks in China, said Wang.
China's position on the conflict clearly indicates that the Asian country is a staunch supporter of friendship, justice and peace, according to Abbas Zaki, head of Palestinian Fatah party's commissioner-general of the Arab and Chinese Affairs.
"China is always committed to safeguarding the peace around the world," and plays a responsible role in solving hot-spot issues, Zaki told Xinhua, adding that the Palestinian leadership highly appreciates China for upholding justice.
Islam Ayadi, assistant professor of political science at the Arab American University in Palestine, said the role China playing in the region is crucial and strategic for the long term, a role that Arab countries hope could become greater. (Video reporters: Shang Hao, Lin En, Xie E, Shang Xuqian; Video editor: Hong Yan)
