Beijing was “deeply concerned about the current escalation of tension and violence between Palestine and Israel”, the Chinese foreign ministry said in a statement on Sunday.
“All parties concerned [are urged] to exercise calm and restraint, to cease fire immediately, to protect the civilian population and to prevent further deterioration of the situation,” it added.
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Hamas militants fired thousands of rockets and sent dozens of fighters into Israeli towns near the blockaded Gaza Strip in an unprecedented surprise attack early on Saturday, gunning down dozens and abducting others. A stunned Israel responded by launching air strikes on Gaza, with Netanyahu vowing to inflict an “unprecedented price”.
At least 232 Palestinians had been killed in the attacks, according to medical sources in Gaza, while the Israeli death toll had climbed to 300 as of Saturday.
In its statement, the Chinese foreign ministry said that the latest round of conflict “fully demonstrates that the long-term stagnation of the peace process is unsustainable”.
“The fundamental way out of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict lies in the implementation of the two-state solution and the establishment of an independent Palestinian state,” it said, referring to a 1993 Israeli-Palestinian deal setting out the path towards a lasting peace in the region.
The international community should promote early resumption of peace talks between Palestine and Israel, the statement added.
“China will continue to make unremitting efforts with the international community to that end.”
In a nighttime address to the nation on Saturday, a major holiday in Israel, Netanyahu said: “What happened today has never been seen before in Israel, and I will make sure it doesn’t happen again.”
“Difficult days are ahead of us, but we will win.”
The latest escalation of violence between Palestinians and Israel has drawn international attention, with major powers like the United States, Britain and France expressing support for Israel.
Russia, meanwhile, called on “Palestinian and Israeli sides to implement an immediate ceasefire, renounce violence, exercise the necessary restraint and establish, with the assistance of the international community, a negotiation process”.
The escalation of tensions has posed a dilemma for China which, unlike the US and its allies, has maintained good relations with Arabs and Israel in the Middle East.
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According to Chinese media, at least one Chinese national had been injured near Ashkelon in southern Israel in the latest violence. The Chinese embassy in Tel Aviv has urged citizens in the country to take precautionary measures.
China’s deputy ambassador to the United Nations, Geng Shuang, earlier said the Palestine issue “should be accorded higher priority” in the international agenda.
In a speech on September 27, the transcript of which was published only on Saturday, Geng said “the continued expansion of [Israeli] settlements” was “encroaching on Palestinian land and resources and squeezing the Palestinian population”.
He also reaffirmed China’s position to support the establishment of an independent Palestine state based on 1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital.
The border refers to the armistice lines from before the Arab-Israeli Six Day War in June 1967, when Israel captured the Gaza Strip from Egypt and the West Bank and East Jerusalem from Jordan, along with other land.
This expanded Israel’s territory beyond the borders marked out by a 1949 armistice with its Arab neighbours Jordan, Egypt, Syria and Lebanon.
It also brought more than a million Palestinians in the occupied territories under Israeli rule.
