ISTANBUL: An alliance of mostly Muslim-majority countries including Turkey, Egypt and Iran on Saturday demanded full Palestinian membership of the United Nations and greater international pressure on Zionist entity amid the Gaza war.

The D-8 Organization for Economic Cooperation, which also includes Bangladesh, Indonesia, Malaysia, Nigeria and Pakistan, called for an immediate ceasefire in the devastated Palestinian territory, where Zionist entity has been battling Hamas militants for more than eight months. Foreign ministers from the group meeting in Istanbul called on the United States to lift its veto on full Palestinian UN membership and on all countries to “exert diplomatic, political, economic and legal pressure” on Zionist entity.

They also urged states to ensure Zionist entity complies with the International Court of Justice’s decisions, withdraws from the southern Rafah governorate and guarantees the safe entry of humanitarian aid to Gaza. Denouncing an “ongoing genocide and grave violations of international law”, the group called on states to contribute to and join legal proceedings against Zionist entity at international courts.

The eight countries also demanded an end to arms and ammunition deliveries to Zionist entity and that all measures be taken to protect Palestinian civilians, rejecting any attempted forced displacement.

They advocated a two-state solution based on 1967 borders with east Jerusalem as a Palestinian capital and a guarantee mechanism to protect a future settlement.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken will visit the Middle East next week to push a plan for an Zionist entity-Hamas ceasefire that aims to end the war, the State Department announced Friday. Blinken, who will be paying his eighth visit to the region since the Oct 7 attack, will visit Zionist entity and key US Arab partners Egypt, Jordan and Qatar from Monday through Wednesday, the State Department said. The United States has been pushing for Hamas to accept a plan laid out a week ago by President Joe Biden that would halt fighting for at least six weeks and free captives held in Gaza.

Blinken “will emphasize the importance of Hamas accepting the proposal on the table, which is nearly identical to one Hamas endorsed last month,” State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said in a statement. The top US diplomat “will discuss how the ceasefire proposal would benefit both Zionist entity and Palestinians. He will underscore that it would alleviate suffering in Gaza, enable a massive surge in humanitarian assistance and allow Palestinians to return to their neighborhoods,” he said.

Miller said the plan would also “unlock the possibility of achieving calm along Zionist entity’s northern border” as tensions rise between Zionist entity and Lebanese militants Hezbollah.

Hamas has not yet formally replied to the offer but has been critical, saying it was not a detailed, written proposal. Qatar and Egypt have been the main interlocutors, with the Qataris submitting the plan to Hamas. In Jordan, Blinken will take part in a UN-backed conference on the humanitarian response in Gaza.

Biden on May 31 unveiled a plan that he hopes will bring an end to the war, which has taken a heavy toll on civilians and increasingly angered his electoral base five months ahead of elections. Under the plan, Zionist entity would withdraw from Gaza population centers and Hamas would free hostages for an initial six weeks, with the ceasefire extended as negotiators seek a permanent end to hostilities.

Biden billed the plan as a Zionist entity offer, although it has drawn criticism from some right-wing Zionist entity politicians critical to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s coalition government. — AFP