Thailand decries killing of innocent civilians in Gaza and Israel
Thailand's Foreign Ministry published a statement on its website on Sunday condemning the killing of innocent civilians regardless of their nationality, by any group and for whatever reason.
The statement referring to the ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict also cited the video clip of a Thai national being killed that was shown at the recent UN General Assembly meeting.
The statement slammed the action, saying “such horrific brutality has stirred a sense of outrage not only among Thais but undoubtedly people throughout the world”. It also said the release of such images does not afford proper respect for the deceased or due consideration for the victim’s family.
The statement also called for the immediate release of all hostages, regardless of nationality.
PM Srettha Thavisin was the first to condemn the conflict when news broke out of a couple of Thai nationals being killed in Israel.
“We strongly condemn this attack, which has tragically resulted in the loss of innocent lives and injury to civilians,” he said in a post on X (formerly Twitter).
In light of today's tragic incident involving the deployment of unmanned combat aircraft and rockets from the Gaza Strip to target Israel on 7 October 2023,
— Srettha Thavisin (@Thavisin) October 7, 2023
the Thai Govt & I extend my deepest condolences to the Government and the people of the State of Israel.
We strongly…
The Thai government has generally been quiet after many netizens responded to Srettha’s message, saying he was too quick to condemn those involved.
The highest number of foreigners killed in the conflict are Thais, with as many as 32 losing their lives since Hamas launched unprecedented attacks on Israel on October 7. As of Saturday, at least 19 of the 200 hostages detained by Hamas are Thai nationals.
There are about 30,000 Thais living in Israel, mostly working on farms through government-to-government agreements. So far, close to 6,000 Thais have returned home and many more are waiting to be repatriated.
However, there are several who want to stay behind and continue working because they have been offered better wages, despite the Thai government urging them to prioritise their safety. Thailand has called on all Thais to return home as soon as possible after Israel announced an expanded military ground operation in Gaza.
