US arms supplies to Israel add fuel to fire of conflict in Gaza: China  

China has decried the United States' support for the ongoing Israeli aggression against Palestinians, saying Washington is only adding fuel to the fire of the conflict by providing arms to the Tel Aviv regime.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian made the comments in a news conference in Beijing on Tuesday, after American media said the administration of US President Joe Biden had approved the sale of $735 million worth of smart weapons to Israel amid the occupying regime’s onslaught against Palestinians in the besieged Gaza Strip.

Lijian said that at the May 16 meeting of the United Nations Security Council, most member states had called for an immediate ceasefire and a political settlement of the conflict.

"We believe that the UN Security Council should send a concerted message and promote peace talks between the parties. However, the United States, instead of taking steps to end the conflict, has merely added fuel to the fire," the Chinese official said.

For the third time on Monday, the United States blocked a joint statement from the UN Security Council that called for an immediate ceasefire and cessation of deadly attacks by the Israeli regime in Palestine.

During the session, envoys representing 14 of the 15 UN Security Council members denounced the Israeli strikes in Gaza that have so far resulted in more than 200 civilian casualties and massive displacement of people, but the push faced stiff opposition from the US government, which has for long been supporting the apartheid regime and protecting it against further humiliation at the international level.

For third time, US blocks UNSC statement on Israeli regime’s crimes in Palestine

The US government has for the third time blocked a joint statement from the UN Security Council, which called for cessation of murderous attacks by the Israeli regime in Palestine, according to reports.

Lijian also censured Washington’s duplicity in dealing with the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and said the US behavior showed a complete disregard for the rights of Muslims and Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.

"The United States has found itself in unprecedented isolation in the UN security Council. It is in conflict with conscience and morality. The world community is deeply disappointed by the United States' behavior toward the Palestinian-Israeli conflict," Zhao said, adding that the United States had ignored the rights of the Palestinians.

The Washington Post reported on Monday that the United States had rubber-stamped selling $735 million in "precision ammunition" to Israel, which comes against a backdrop of a $4-billion military aid package to the regime every year.

The Israeli military has since last Monday ramped up its assaults against the besieged coastal sliver.

The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) announced in a statement on Tuesday that the Israeli regime's ongoing onslaught on Gaza had left more than 52,000 Palestinians displaced and nearly 450 buildings destroyed or badly damaged in the coastal enclave.

52,000 displaced in Gaza due to Israeli aggression: UN agency

A UN agency says more than 52,000 Palestinians have been displaced as a result of Israel’s ongoing aggression against the besieged Gaza Strip.

Amnesty International also said that Israeli forces had displayed a shocking disregard for the lives of Palestinian civilians by targeting residential buildings in air raids, which it said might amount to war crimes or crimes against humanity.

Over the past week, the Tel Aviv regime has been launching large-scale airstrikes across Gaza, razing homes and civilian infrastructure to the ground. Israeli artillery and tanks have also been targeting the blockaded coastal enclave.

The Palestinian resistance movement of Hamas and other groups have retaliated by firing thousands of rockets toward the occupied Palestinian lands. Many of the projectiles have flown into the depths of the territories.

Despite international calls for an immediate halt of all hostilities, including from UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has pledged that the onslaught will continue.

The Israeli regime aggression against Gaza has so far killed at least 212 Palestinians. Some 1,500 people have been injured, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry.

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