Following the group’s devastating onslaught on October 7, which killed at least 1,400 Israelis, Israel has asked India to declare Hamas as a “terrorist” organisation.
“We spoke to the relevant authorities here [in India],” stated Naor Gilon, Israel’s Ambassador to New Delhi. “This isn’t the first time we’ve discussed it. I believe we both recognise the threat of terrorism. We are not putting any pressure on it.”
According to the Hindustan Times, he stated that India’s identification of Hamas as a terrorist organisation was “due” due to the countries’ common “war on terror.”
Gilon stated that Israeli officials made the request to their Indian colleagues following the October 7 attack and that they “are still in dialogue.””We’re talking to India.” It is a friendly talk,” he added.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi was among the first foreign leaders to call Hamas’ strike on Israel “terrorism,” though he did not identify the group. He then condemned “terrorism in all its forms and manifestations” during a phone discussion with his Israeli counterpart, Benjamin Netanyahu.
The Israeli envoy said on Wednesday that Modi’s words “unequivocally condemning terrorism” had established a “very clear tone.” “When it comes to terrorism,” he added, “India is also coming from the point of view of someone who knows what it is talking about, being itself a victim of terrorism.”
The envoy branded Israel’s ongoing offensive in Gaza as “a war of being able to survive in the Middle East.” “We live in a fantasy world.”
He alleged that Iran has been “financing, training and equipping Hamas.” However, in the aftermath of the attack, Iran’s Supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei denied any Iranian involvement.
While condemning “terrorism” in the aftermath of the Hamas attack, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi also stated that civilian casualties in the ongoing conflict were “a matter of serious and continuing concern.” In addition, New Delhi restated its support for “direct negotiations for establishing a two-state solution” to the Israel-Palestine conflict.
Modi reaffirmed New Delhi’s commitment to maintaining humanitarian assistance for the Palestinian people during a discussion with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas last week.
Hamas, which was founded in 1987, took control of Gaza in 2007. Among the countries and regional blocs that have formally identified the group as a terrorist organisation are the United States, the United Kingdom, Israel, Australia, Japan, and the European Union. In general, most major Western countries have supported Israel’s retaliatory strikes.
