Govt monitoring US Bill regarding sanctions against foreign supporters of Hamas

KUALA LUMPUR: The government is currently monitoring the decision of the United States House of Representatives to pass a Bill regarding restrictions on foreign entities that support Hamas and the Islamic Jihad Movement in Palestine on Wednesday.

Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Dr Zambry Abdul Kadir (pic) said the ministry will thoroughly examine the content of the Bill before taking further actions.

"The situation in Palestine has worsened and as of today the death toll reported is over 8,700 people and this is highly disappointing. Moreover, the number of people who have lost their homes or are displaced has reached 1.4 million individuals in total and this is extremely saddening.

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"On one side, continuous bombing are taking place, and on the other side they are not pursuing the best path to resolve the issue. Instead, they are further complicating the situation, making it difficult to achieve a positive outcome that would allow us to immediately halt these attacks and facilitate the entry of humanitarian assistance,” he said.

He told this to reporters after attending the Diploma in Diplomacy graduation ceremony at the Institute of Diplomacy and Foreign Relations here Thursday (Nov 2).

He said the first shipment of humanitarian aid for the Palestinians in Gaza is to be sent to Al-Arish International Airport, Egypt via a special chartered cargo flight today.

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"We thank the Egyptian authorities because in a short time, they allowed help from Malaysia to arrive. Normally for other countries to reach Al-Arish airport it takes days, approximately five or six days but in the context of Malaysia, we get the response in just 36 hours.

"This allows us to make preparations for delivery to the airport, from there the Egyptian authorities will take follow-up actions to deliver goods to Rafah," he said.

Zambry added that Wisma Putra is also trying its best to get a Malaysian, Nurul Ain Haron and her husband who have been in Gaza since Oct 1 out with the cooperation of a third country.

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"We have also received feedback about the possibility that the route in Rafah will be opened to allow people from abroad and those who have dual nationality to leave," he said. - Bernama