Ambassador Naor Gilon said Israel conveyed to relevant Indian authorities to declare Hamas as a terrorist organisation following its surprise assault on the Jewish nation on October 7.
Israel-Hamas War Updates: Israeli ambassador Naor Gilon on Wednesday urged India to proscribe Gaza-based militant group Hamas as a terrorist organisation. Interacting with journalists here, the Israeli envoy thanked India for its “100 per cent” support to Israel in its anti-terror operations against Hamas and stated that time has come for New Delhi to declared the militant group as a a terror outfit.
“It is time for India to declare Hamas as terrorist organisation in India,” Gilon said, adding many countries have already done that.
Gilon said Israel conveyed to relevant Indian authorities to declare Hamas as a terrorist organisation following its surprise assault on the Jewish nation on October 7. The ambassador hinted that the matter had been taken up earlier as well.
“Prime Minister Narendra Modi was among first world leaders to condemn the terror attack… India is a very important moral voice in the world and the important countries for us are with us,” Gilon said.
“India is solidly supporting us in our counter-terror operations,” he said.
The latest conflict has been triggered by the unprecedented and multi-pronged attacks against Israel by Hamas militants from Gaza on October 7. Israel launched a massive counter offensive in Gaza to avenge the attacks.
“For Israel, it is a war to survive in the Middle East,” Gilon said, asserting that Israel is determined to destroy Hamas.
He said the purpose of the Israeli action against Hamas is to ensure that the brutality that was perpetrated by the organisation is not repeated.
Israel-Hamas war
Israel is currently embroiled bloody conflict with Hamas militants who control the Gaza strip.
Since the start of hostilities, more than 5,700 Palestinians have been killed in the counter-offensive launched by the Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) in retaliation to the October 7 attacks.
According to official Israeli sources, at least 1,400 Israelis and foreign nationals have been killed in Israel.
On Tuesday, rapidly expanding Israeli airstrikes across the Gaza Strip killed more than 700 Palestinians as medical facilities across the territory were forced to close because of bombing damage and a lack of power.
Gaza’s Hamas-run Health Ministry said the attacks killed at least 704 people over the past day, including 305 children and 173 women.
Nearly 2,300 minors have been killed in the Israeli offensive, the ministry said, without giving a detailed breakdown. The figure includes the disputed toll from an explosion at a hospital last week.
(With inputs from agencies)