The Qatari official has also shed light on other global issues of concern, including the ongoing war in Syria and illegal Israeli occupation of Palestine.
Qatar has allocated $5 million through the Qatar Fund for Development (QFFD) on Sunday to support Ukrainian refugees and displaced persons as the Russian invasion of Ukraine continues.
The monetary donation was announced by Qatar’s Assistant Foreign Minister Lolwah Al Khater during a virtual Donors’ Conference for Ukraine. Al Khater has stressed that the situation in Ukraine “requires the solidarity of the international community.”
According to the UN’s International Organization for Migration (IOM), more than 7.1 million people have been internally displaced in Ukraine due to the ongoing war. The organisation has also registered at least 4,503,954 refugees, which have been fleeing to neighbouring European countries including Poland and Ireland.
Qatar welcomes Turkey’s mediation between Russia and Ukraine
During her remarks, the Qatari official called for the need for an immediate ceasefire in Ukraine and extended Qatar’s condolences the families of those killed since the start of the invasion on 24 February.
According to the UN, 1,766 people, including 69 children, have been killed in Ukraine as of 9b April. The exact total of civilians killed is feared to be higher than the one reported.
Since the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Qatar has been calling for the need to respect Kyiv’s territorial integrity and resolve the situation diplomatically.
In March, Qatar was amongst the 141 countries who voted on a UN resolution demanding Russia’s “immediate and complete” withdrawal from Ukraine.
Whilst Russian troops have fully withdrawn from northern Ukraine on Friday, they have moved to the eastern Donbas region. The move is raising concerns over a takeover of the territory including the besieged city of Mariupol.
Global crises
Beyond the situation in Ukraine, Al Khater has also shed light on other global issues of concern, including the ongoing war in Syria and illegal Israeli occupation of Palestine.
“What we’re seeing today in terms of Ukrainians living in a dark period of their history that pushes them to flee, as is the case for the millions of refugees who previously suffered from the scourge of wars and the international community’s neglect of their suffering like the Syrian refugees,” said Al Khater.
The Bashar Al Assad regime waged a war on civilians in 2011 following mass protests during the Arab Spring that called on him to step down.
According to the UN, there are at least 5,721,883 registered Syrian refugees who were forced to leave their homeland due to the ongoing war in Syria since the start of the war. At least 6.7 million people have been internally displaced as 13.4 million people are in need of humanitarian protection in the country.
Qatar repeatedly renewed its refusal to normalise with the Assad regime for its ongoing crimes against civilians.
The Qatari official also addressed “the longest refugee tragedy in modern history”, referring to the Palestinian refugees who have been displaced from their land as the illegal Israeli occupation persists.
According to an Amnesty report from February, more than six million Palestinians remain refugees 73 years on, most of whom live in camps in neighbouring countries.
The report amplified previous ones released by Palestinian activists, detailing flagrant human rights abuses against Palestinians.
Such abuses include the ongoing forced dispossession of Palestinians to make way for Jewish settlers, imposing over 65 discriminatory laws, and denial of the right to return for those who were made refugees during the establishment of the Zionist state.
Qatar has long refused to normalise with Israel as long as it continues its illegal occupation of Palestine and its abuses of Palestinians’ rights.
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