BE was of the opinion this Saturday that the President of the Republic must choose whether to side with the Secretary General of the United Nations in defense of the ceasefire in the conflict between Israel and Hamas, or on the side of “international hypocrisy”.
This warning to Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa was conveyed by the coordinator of Bloco de Esquerda, Mariana Mortágua, in statements to journalists, at the end of a visit to the Benfica market.
Friday, during a visit to the Diplomatic Bazaar, in the Lisbon Congress Center, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa told the head of the Palestinian diplomatic mission in Portugal that some Palestinians “should not have started this war” with Israel and advised them to be moderate and peaceful.
When Nabil Abuznaid invoked “the 56-year occupation,” the head of state responded: “I know, but they shouldn’t have started it.”
In the presence of journalists, MAriana Mortágua emphasized the criticism she had already expressed the day before against the head of state, stating that the Israeli government is pursuing a “policy of genocide against the Palestinian people,” with the deaths of “thousands of citizens, children, employees of the Nations, Nations and journalists”.
“We are witnessing attacks on hospitals and refugee camps. Faced with this blatant violation of international law, there are only two possible positions: the position of the UN Secretary General, António Guterres, to denounce the crimes, the violation of international law and the call for a ceasefire that saves lives; or to the position of international hypocrisy, which pretends that what is happening in Gaza is Israel’s right to defend itself,” he stressed.
Mariana Mortágua later claimed that Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, as president of the republic, “should have been next to the first position”.
“There is only one role to play: defending the ceasefire. This is how Portugal is represented. This is how Portugal is represented in international bodies, alongside António Guterres and speaking with one voice. The urgency and duty of representatives of Portuguese democracy must be to call for a ceasefire that saves lives. This is what we expect from the President of the Republic,” he added.
Source: DN
