The situation surrounding the Palestinian-Israeli conflict is currently in a deadlock, with no visible resolution in sight, Director of the Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) of the Russian Federation Sergei Naryshkin told reporters.
"The current situation, in my view, is in a deadlock. Unfortunately, there is no clear way out of it yet. Israel's leadership insists on ending hostilities only when Hamas is completely destroyed, which seems highly improbable," he stated in response to a TASS question.
"In this context, people are being displaced from their homes and territories, leading to a significant humanitarian catastrophe on an enormous scale," - Naryshkin continued. - "The brutality has triggered even more brutality, with casualties now estimated at 18,000 or possibly even more."
The head of the SVR pointed out that the escalation of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict is contributing to the radicalization of Arab society. He emphasized that this trend poses a "threat to the expansion of terrorism, particularly in the Arab world and beyond, with implications for the West."
"Regrettably, the international mechanisms for resolving the Middle East conflict are not effective. Specifically, the Middle East Quartet [comprising Russia, the United States, the UN, and the European Union] is inactive, primarily due to Washington's obstruction over the past few years," he concluded.
Sergei Naryshkin, responding to a TASS inquiry, mentioned that Russian agencies have successfully evacuated nearly all Russian citizens who wished to leave the Gaza Strip. He highlighted that the evacuation efforts are not limited to Russian citizens, stating, "Individuals from Ukraine, Moldova, Kazakhstan, and several other countries have also sought assistance from the Russian embassy."
GSV "Russia - Islamic World"
Photo: official website of the President of the Russian Federation
Based on materials from TASS