Armenia Formally Recognizes A Palestinian State As Children In Gaza Suffer From Malnutrition

JERUSALEM — Armenia’s foreign ministry said Friday that the former Soviet republic would recognize a Palestinian state, prompting Israel to summon its ambassador for a “severe reprimand.”

A short statement from Israel’s Foreign Ministry provided no further details.

Armenia’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement that it joined United Nations resolutions calling for an immediate cease-fire in the Gaza Strip, and said “the catastrophic humanitarian situation in Gaza and the ongoing military conflict” was one of the most important on the international agenda.

“We support the ‘two-state’ solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict,” the statement said. “We are convinced that this is the only way to ensure that both Palestinians and Israelis can fulfill their legitimate aspirations.”

Three-quarters of the 193 United Nations member nations have recognized a Palestinian state, including Ireland and Spain, although none of the major Western powers has done so. Palestinians believe the recognitions confer international legitimacy on their struggle, especially as Israel’s war against Hamas, now in its ninth month, faces growing international criticism over the campaign of systematic destruction in Gaza and huge cost in civilian lives.

Last month, Spain, Ireland and Norway said they had decided to recognize a Palestinian state, and since then Slovenia and the Caribbean nation of Antigua and Barbuda have followed suit.

Gaza hospital chief says hundreds of children are suffering from malnutrition

DEIR Al-BALAH, Gaza Strip — The head of one of the largest hospitals in north Gaza says his staff has recently registered some 250 children suffering from malnutrition and the numbers are raising daily due to acute food shortages.

Dr. Husam Abu Safyia, director of Kamal Adwan Hospital, urged the international community to pressure Israel to allow more food and other products into the Gaza Strip, warning that conditions are dire in the besieged territory. Israel controls all of Gaza’s border crossings.

Abu Safyia told The Associated Press on Friday that medical authorities have sent teams from his hospital to centers housing displaced people in north Gaza to assess them for malnutrition.

He said flour is the most available foodstuff in north Gaza, and that people need more proteins and fats to keep healthy.

Northern Gaza was badly affected by the fighting during the early months of the Israel-Hamas war and is still suffering food shortages.

Abu Safyia added that illnesses are spreading in Gaza as trash piles grow because authorities lack the resources to remove garbage and sewage from the streets.

“We are facing a real disaster,” he said adding that more people could die in the coming days if food does not flow into the Gaza Strip.

AP writer Julia Frankel contributed.

SOURCE: PBS