Sri Lanka’s United National Party (UNP) issued a strong condemnation Tuesday of an Israeli military strike on Qatari territory, warning that the attack jeopardizes already fragile efforts to mediate peace between Israel and Hamas.
Issuing a statement, the UNP called the September 9th attack a “violation of a sovereign state” and criticized Israel for targeting a nation that has played a “central role” in brokering negotiations during the nearly two-year-long Gaza conflict.
“To attack the country which has mediated peace talks demonstrates that further attempts to negotiate a cessation of hostilities appears an unlikely prospect,” the party said.
The UNP’s stance reflects a broader pattern in its response to the Gaza war. The party was among the first in South Asia to condemn Hamas’s October 7, 2023 attack on Israel and to call for the immediate release of Israeli hostages. But as civilian casualties mounted in Gaza, the UNP shifted to condemn Israel’s ongoing military campaign, urging an immediate end to the violence.
In its latest statement, the party reiterated its dual call for a full cessation of hostilities and for Hamas to release the remaining Israeli hostages without delay.
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