NEW YORK, Sept 28 — Malaysia has strongly urged that the United Nations (UN) impose sanctions on Israel, stressing that the metastasis of Zionist regime’s brutality in the Middle East must not be allowed to continue.
Delivering the country’s national statement at the general debate of the UN General Assembly here yesterday, Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan said Israel’s latest assault on Qatar was not just an attack on a few Hamas representatives, but a violation of another state’s sovereignty and an insult to all mediation efforts.
He said the strike signalled that Israel’s violence would continue to destabilise the region, emphasising that the effects of such actions would inevitably spill over to the rest of the world.
“The atrocities may have begun with Palestine, but they certainly will not end with Palestine. As the Middle East grows ever more dangerous for its residents, we will feel the reverberations all over the world.
“This is why simply advocating for a two-state solution is not enough,” he said.
He also reiterated Malaysia’s commitment to support Palestinians through any measure, including the New York Declaration.
Mohamad said concrete action must also be taken against the occupying force, while long-term support should be prepared to ensure the development of a self-governing Palestinian state.
“The test that we now face is an existential one. Eighty years of the UN, and 77 years of the ethnic cleansing of Palestine, if we cannot resolve this, the citizens of the world will lose faith in us and in the international order,” he said.
Meanwhile, Mohamad reiterated Malaysia’s call for urgent UN reforms, stressing the body must stay relevant in tackling global challenges, especially the long-standing question of Palestine.
He said Malaysia believes three urgent reforms are key to the UN’s survival, including the need to limit, if not abolish, vetoes.
“We must challenge it each and every time that it is wielded, especially in cases of crimes against humanity.
“Authority must flow back to the General Assembly. As the most inclusive body of this house, it should be allowed to serve as the conscience and voice of the world, unimpeded.
“We also must redesign global financing mechanisms to ensure transparency and fairness for the Global South,” he said, noting that reform is no longer a choice, but imperative.
Mohamad urged the organisation to continue to demand accountability from the Permanent Members of the UN Security Council through Resolution 76/272: the Veto Initiative, citing that repeated failures of the Security Council to fulfil the will of the General Assembly must be met with strong resistance.
“We must pursue results through Resolution 377A: Uniting for Peace. No more shall we quietly accept the dismissal of our collective voice. We must question and challenge the veto. We must free the Security Council from this humiliating paralysis,” he said.
He added that the UN must remain a relevant and effective international organisation and a global guardian of peace.
Since October 7, 2023, Israel has been carrying out a genocide in Gaza, which has killed more than 65,000 Palestinians, most of them women and children. The Zionist military campaign has devastated the enclave and led to widespread famine.
