KUALA LUMPUR, July 2 — Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim has urged the international community not to stay silent in the face of Palestinians’ continued colonisation, oppression, and dispossession by Israel’s Zionist regime.
He said it should remind nations of their own struggles against colonialism, and questioned if the world could, “in good conscience”, stand by while a similar form of colonisation continues with impunity.
“The latest findings of the Independent International Commission of Inquiry of the actions of Israeli security forces since October 7, 2023, reveal a story of untold and unparallelled horror, with the systematic, deliberate, and targeted killing of more than 20,000 Palestinian children and the inflicting of grave injury on another 44,000,” he said in his keynote address at the 39th Asia-Pacific Roundtable (APR) here today.
Anwar said Israel’s atrocities have reached a point where even the term “genocide” no longer adequately captures “the barbarity, depravity, and sheer evil” of its crimes against Palestinians.
He described the crisis in Gaza as a festering wound on the world’s collective conscience, adding that the failure of influential countries to intervene has emboldened the Zionist regime to expand its military campaigns across the region.
The prime minister also called for an end to violence against civilians in conflict zones, saying hostilities must cease and civilian protection must take precedence.
He warned that continued disregard for human life paints a bleak future despite advances in economic and technological development.
Anwar then expressed concern over what he described as the growing erosion of respect for international law and norms, where “might makes right” and narrow national interests increasingly outweigh legal obligations and international commitments.
Referring to Malaysia’s own experience, he said the unilateral cancellation of the delivery of naval strike missiles by a Norwegian supplier despite receiving most of the payment reflects a wider pattern of double standards among countries that profess to uphold the rule of law.
“While Malaysia will continue to seek diplomatic and legal remedies, and do so in good faith, this episode speaks to a larger problem and dangerous trend of double standards by those who claim to stand for the rule of law and the hypocrisy of those who are conveniently muted on such violations.
“Is it acceptable for some countries to ignore international laws and norms, while others are subjected to the strictest standard of compliance?” he asked.
Anwar warned that if such unequal treatment becomes the norm in relations between Western countries and the Global South, it would undermine trust and the prospects for equitable partnerships in the future.
