On Tuesday, the Senate encouraged the Nigerian government to take prompt action, in concert with other countries, to terminate the continuing Israeli-Hamas conflict and save lives and property.
It also asked the Federal Government to press for a two-state solution as a lasting solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, as previously endorsed by the UN in 1948.
The resolutions were passed in response to a motion proposed by Senator Suleiman Kawu Sumaila (Kano South) and co-sponsored by 28 other senators.
Since the fighting began in October, many have been dead and maimed, including women, children, and relief workers, while residential buildings, schools, health institutions, and worship centres have been bombed.
The two-state solution asks for the creation of an independent Palestinian state alongside Israel.
Senator Adamu Aliero (PDP, Kebbi), who introduced the motion, stated the current war’s casualty counts were appalling and that if not terminated soon, it may lead to World War III.
Senators who spoke during the discussion, including Barau Jibrin (Kano), Enyinnaya Abaribe (Abia), and Sani Musa (Niger), all decried the killings on both sides and demanded a halt to the fighting immediately.
Deputy Senate President, Barau Jibrin, said, “What we need now is a ceasefire so that people who are being killed every day will no longer be killed. So many people have lost their lives, and so many children have been left orphaned.
“All you see on television about the conflict are dead bodies and so forth. This is not acceptable. All this is not good for the modern world.
“We should add our voices to those of responsible people all over the world that Palestine and Israel should come together and accept the two-state solution for permanent peace to prevail in that region of the world.”
Abaribe said, “Having experienced the Nigerian civil war in 1967 as a child, an eye for an eye will lead to everybody not having eyes at all. I call for an immediate ceasefire and an end to the conflict.”
Meanwhile, the US reiterated Tuesday that it opposes Israel’s planned long-term occupation of the Gaza Strip, to which Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has promised “overall security” of the territory following the war.
“Our viewpoint is that Palestinians must be at the forefront of these decisions, and Gaza is Palestinian land and it will remain Palestinian land,” State Department spokesman Vedant Patel told reporters.
“Generally speaking, we do not support the reoccupation of Gaza, and neither does Israel,” Patel stated.
In 2005, Israel withdrew from the Gaza Strip, which it had occupied during the 1967 Six-Day War. After Hamas terrorists took control of the territory, it imposed an embargo.
Patel noted that the US agreed “there is no returning to the October 6 status quo,” referring to the day before a massive attack by Hamas.
