Conflict In Gaza: Anwar Condemns Netanyahu And Zionist Regime's Actions As Cruel, Insane

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 24 (Bernama) -- Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim has described the actions of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his regime, which continues to launch attacks on Gaza, as inhumane and beyond the bounds of sanity.

Anwar said violence targeting children, women, hospitals and schools in the region and various forms of oppression clearly showed that the Zionist regime was willing to use starvation and restrictions on humanitarian aid as weapons of war.

"I am already 78, but I have never seen, read or heard in this era that there are people so cruel.

"Netanyahu and his group are truly insane! cruel! They even maintain that all the little children (in Gaza) are Hamas... even a two-year-old child running around is accused of being Hamas. This is sick,” he said.

Anwar said this when he delivered the Keynote Lecture: "Malaysiaku Bersama Gaza pada Malam Himpunan dan Selawat Malaysiaku Bersama Gaza” in conjunction with the Sumud Nusantara Carnival at Dataran Merdeka here tonight.

Also present were Communications Minister Datuk Fahmi Fadzil; Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Religious Affairs) Datuk Dr Mohd Na’im Mokhtar; Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Federal Territories) Datuk Seri Dr Zaliha Mustafa; and Chief Secretary to the Government Tan Sri Shamsul Azri Abu Bakar.

Others in attendance included Sumud Nusantara director-general Muhammad Nadir Al-Nuri Kamaruzaman, who is also the Cinta Gaza Malaysia (CGM) chief executive officer; and Malaysian Consultative Council of Islamic Organisations (MAPIM) chief executive officer Datuk Dr Sani Araby Abdul Alim Araby.

Anwar also questioned the attitude of Western countries that chose to remain silent on the oppression in Gaza, even though they had previously rejected the occupation.

"I have asked the leaders of European, American and other countries, are we fighting to accept occupation? Why is the occupation allowed in Gaza? Can we accept the killing of little children and women?

"Why Gaza? Is it because they are Arabs, because they are Muslims, because it is called Palestine? These are the questions they must answer, and they have only one answer - which is Hamas. Oct 7 (Hamas’ attack on Israel). That is their only answer.

The Prime Minister emphasised that everything that is happening in Gaza is the result of decades of oppression by Israel, which has seen Palestinian land seized, houses destroyed, schools demolished, mosques torn down, and even churches flattened.

He said that the Palestinian struggle cannot be separated from the history of imperialism, colonialism and continuous exploitation.

"These are not humans, these are animals! That is our answer to them. Everything you own is taken away - land, water, families, children… all seized. That is colonialism.

"Why is it so difficult to understand this reality? Why are there people talking about human rights and democracy? What human rights? What democracy? What world order?” asked the Prime Minister.

At the event, the Prime Minister also flagged off the Sumud Nusantara Carnival 2025 for a humanitarian flotilla mission to Gaza, which brings together delegations from Malaysia, Indonesia, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Maldives, the Philippines and Thailand.

-- BERNAMA