On Monday, PM Modi reaffirmed India’s opposition to terrorism while also pleading with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to stop regional tensions from rising. New Delhi will support the prompt restoration of peace in West Asia.
During a discussion with Netanyahu about the most recent events in West Asia, PM Modi made the comments. The conversation took place a few days after top Hezbollah commander Hassan Nasrallah was killed by an Israeli airstrike in Lebanon, raising concerns about a possible worsening of the Gaza conflict.
I discussed recent events in West Asia with Prime Minister @netanyahu. In a post on X, PM Modi stated that “terrorism has no place in our world.”
Preventing regional escalation and guaranteeing the safe release of all hostages are imperative. Referring to the numerous Israelis who are still being held captive by Hamas following their kidnapping during the terror assaults on October 7, 2023, he continued, “India is committed to supporting efforts for an early restoration of peace and stability.”
The event transpired just hours after the Israeli army declared on Monday that its soldiers had “eliminated” the commander of Hamas in Lebanon. The military released a statement saying, “Overnight, the IAF (air force) struck and eliminated the terrorist Fatah Sharif, head of the Lebanon branch of the Hamas terrorist organization.”
Sharif “was in charge of organizing Hezbollah operatives to carry out Hamas terror operations in Lebanon.” Additionally, he oversaw Hamas’ operations in Lebanon to appoint agents and purchase armaments, according to the statement. According to Hamas, Sharif was slain in an airstrike on his house in the southern Lebanon Al-Bass camp. According to the group, he was murdered in a “terrorist and criminal assassination” together with his wife, son, and daughter.
In a related development, three members of the small, Marxist Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine died when an airstrike on Monday struck an apartment building in the centre of Beirut, the first one to strike in the Lebanese capital in almost a year of fighting.
PM Modi’s call for moderation is noteworthy in light of statements made by a number of Israeli officials regarding a potential ground military invasion of Lebanon. Additionally, Israel has launched airstrikes against groups in Yemen and Syria that support Iran. Ayatollah Khamenei, the supreme leader of Iran, has vowed to exact revenge for Nasrallah’s death, and analysts predict that Tehran’s strike would exacerbate the situation in West Asia.
Following the terror events of October 7, India first showed support for Israel. However, as its strategic relationships with numerous Arab powers, such as Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), grew, the country took a more nuanced stance. The demands of the Indian side include an early cessation of hostilities, the release of hostages, the restoration of humanitarian aid to Gaza, and the resumption of talks and diplomacy aimed at achieving a two-state solution.
A little over a week has passed since PM Modi and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas met on the margins of the Summit of the Future in New York on September 22. In that meeting, Modi reaffirmed India’s support for the Palestinian people, including humanitarian aid, and voiced “deep concern” about the humanitarian crisis in Gaza and the worsening security conditions in the area.
In response to the Israel-Palestine conflict, he reaffirmed India’s “time-tested principled position” and urged a truce and a return to diplomatic relations. Additionally, he emphasized that long-term peace and security in the region can only be achieved through a two-state solution.
According to Iran’s foreign ministry, the nation will not send troops to fight Israel in Gaza or Lebanon. Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kanani stated that Lebanon and fighters in the Palestinian territories “have the capability and strength to defend themselves against the aggression” and that “there is no need to send extra or volunteer forces of the Islamic Republic of Iran.”
Israel “will not remain without reprimand and punishment for the crimes it has committed against the Iranian people, military personnel, and the resistance forces,” Kanani asserted.