Jordan king demands global push for Gaza ceasefire during call with Canadian PM

Jordan’s King Abdullah II on Friday received a phone call from Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau during which he called for international pressure toward an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, state media reported.

The king “stressed the importance of protecting civilians and increasing humanitarian aid for Gaza, while guaranteeing its sustained delivery, noting Jordan’s efforts in this regard,” Petra news agency said.

The Jordanian monarch reaffirmed his country’s rejection of attempts to forcibly displace Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza, and called on the international community to help counter extremist settler violence in the West Bank.

King Abdullah “reiterated that security and military solutions can never bring peace,” adding that the only way is to “create a political horizon that leads to just and comprehensive peace based on a two-state solution.”

Tens of thousands of fleeing Palestinians sought shelter on Friday as Israeli tanks pushed through the central Gaza Strip, with more than 180 people reported killed in 24 hours of airstrikes and artillery barrages on the shattered enclave.

This brings the death toll to 21,507, almost 1 percent of Gaza’s population, since the conflict began on Oct. 7 following a surprise attack by Hamas militants on southern Israel that killed 1,200 people and seized 240 hostages.

Almost all of the besieged territory’s 2.3 million population have been forced to flee their homes, some more than once, while thousands more bodies are thought to be buried in the ruins of neighborhoods.