ISTANBUL

Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim on Thursday called on the international community to avoid confusion, and discrimination in dealing with the conflict and human suffering in Palestine.

Addressing the East Asia Summit in Jakarta, the capital of Indonesia, Anwar said any form of racism, Islamophobia, and xenophobia cannot be accepted and should be condemned as strongly as possible.

The Malaysian prime minister is in Indonesia to attend the annual summit of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).

On Palestine, Anwar, and ASEAN leaders expressed concern over the developments in the Middle East and reiterated the need for a comprehensive, just, and sustainable solution to the crisis in order to achieve peace and stability in the region.

“We fully supported the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people for an independent Palestinian state with the realization of two states, Palestine and Israel, living side by side in peace and security based on the pre-1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital,” the ASEAN statement read, Bernama News reported.

Later, he met with UN Secretary-General Antonia Guterres to discuss the issues of Palestine and Myanmar, according to statements on his X account, formerly known as Twitter.

Anwar reiterated Malaysia's commitment to collaborating closely with both the UN and ASEAN, especially in endeavors aimed at achieving a peaceful resolution to Myanmar's political crisis.

Expressing his “disappointment” with the insufficient advancements in the implementation of the ASEAN’s 5-Point Consensus by Myanmar’s authorities, Anwar said: “I also voiced my concern that the crisis in Myanmar has opened opportunities for criminal syndicates to intensify their activities.”