By Asia News/Agencies
Oct 16 2023
The attack by a “foreigner” took place in Beijing’s embassy district. While China offers its services as a mediator in the conflict, Israel views this coldly after Beijing failed to explicitly condemn the massacres of seven days ago. China is also taking a low profile vis-à-vis its own citizens killed or held by Hamas in Gaza.
Beijing (AsiaNews/Agencies) – China is still offering its services as a mediator in the conflict between Israel and Hamas; however, Friday’s attack against an Israeli diplomat in Beijing is likely to have a serious impact for Sino-Israeli relations.
Yesterday, Hamas called for worldwide action against Israeli targets. In France, a teacher was attacked and killed at his school, while in Beijing’s Chaoyang District, one of the best-policed areas of the city since it hosts several embassies, an Israeli embassy employee was stabbed by a man in front of a supermarket, not far from the embassy.
Israel’s Foreign Ministry said the employee is in hospital in stable condition. The incident was captured on camera and went viral on Chinese social media.
Chinese police announced that the investigation into the case was ongoing. It described the attacker as a 53-year-old “foreigner” (some sources say a Palestinian) who runs a small business in Beijing.
The incident comes at a time when relations between Israel and the People’s Republic of China are very tense.
The Israeli government criticised China for its call to de-escalate the conflict sparked by the terrorist action a week ago, and a “fair” solution for the Palestinians without expressly mentioning Hamas.
China’s Foreign Ministry said Chinese Middle East envoy Zhai Jun held talks yesterday with the Arab League, in pursuit of Beijing’s diplomatic action towards solving the conflict.
Zhai told representatives from the 22-member bloc that China would continue to provide humanitarian aid to Gaza. Before this, he had direct contacts with the Israeli government.
China has so far said very little about Chinese nationals caught up in the conflict. A Foreign Ministry spokesperson confirmed the death of three Chinese citizens without releasing their names or the circumstances of their death.
The Ministry also did not provide clear information about missing Chinese, presumably held by Hamas.
Unlike other countries, including in Asia, China is not planning to say anything in public about those caught up in the crisis, simply acknowledging that they found themselves in the wrong place at the wrong time.
The only newsworthy item from China is a statement by the mother of Noa Argamani, the Chinese-Israeli woman who appears in a video at the time of her abduction at the rave party in the desert.
From Beijing, where she lives, the mother said that her daughter (contrary to what was said at first) was not born in China but in Israel and so is not a Chinese citizen.
Finally, it should be noted that while China is reluctant to speak about Hamas despite having its own citizens among the victims of its terrorism, the Uyghurs have clearly come out against the violence of the Islamists. China treats Uyghur pro-autonomy groups acting on behalf of the Muslim population of Xinjiang as a front for jihadism.
On Monday, the World Uyghur Congress (WUC), the most representative of the Uyghur organisations, issued a statement in which it “strongly condemns the horrific attacks by Hamas against Israeli civilians and is deeply concerned about the prospect of escalation of conflict and further loss of lives.
“We stand in solidarity with all those suffering from terror and war, and we keep all those impacted by violence in our prayers.
“The WUC urges the international community to act urgently to protect civilian lives and to establish an effective mechanism for a just and lasting peace in the Middle East.” – Asia News
