COLMBO, May 13, 2025 (WAFA) – The Ambassador of the State of Palestine to Sri Lanka, Ihab Al-Tari, briefed the Speaker of the Sri Lankan Parliament, Jagath Wickramaratne, on the latest developments in the Palestinian arena on Wednesday.
This came during a meeting between the two leaders at the Sri Lankan Parliament in Colombo. The meeting is part of the embassy's efforts to reconstitute the Sri Lanka-Palestine Parliamentary Friendship Committee in the newly elected 10th Parliament of Sri Lanka, with the aim of strengthening bilateral relations between the two countries at the parliamentary and diplomatic levels.
During the meeting, Ambassador Al-Tari focused in particular on the worsening humanitarian catastrophe in the Gaza Strip as a result of the ongoing Israeli aggression and the tightened blockade imposed by the Israeli occupation forces.
He cited the recent statement issued by the office of Prime Minister Mohammad Mustafa, which declared that the Gaza Strip had entered a state of famine and required urgent international intervention.
Ambassador Al-Tari addressed the seriousness of the situation in the West Bank, including the daily and ongoing violations, the Israeli occupation forces' storming of cities and camps, the assassinations, targeting of infrastructure, and the destruction of Palestinian infrastructure.
He also noted the attacks by colonists against defenseless Palestinian civilians and the continued seizure of Palestinian lands, all part of the annexation policy pursued by the extremist Israeli government to destroy the two-state solution and render it impossible.
For his part, the Speaker of the Sri Lankan Parliament expressed his deep concern about the situation in Gaza and the West Bank, stressing his rejection of violence against civilians, especially women and children, and the importance of moving towards a just peace.
He also emphasized Sri Lanka's unwavering commitment to supporting the Palestinian cause and the Palestinian people's right to self-determination and the establishment of a Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital. He considered the reconstitution of the Parliamentary Friendship Committee an important practical step to strengthen this position.
Following the meeting, Ambassador Al-Tari, accompanied by the Speaker of Parliament, proceeded to the Parliamentary Debate Hall, where the Speaker opened the session to form the Sri Lanka-Palestine Parliamentary Friendship Committee and elect its members. The session was attended by a large number of MPs, ministers, and heads of various political parties.
The Ambassador delivered a brief speech in which he emphasized that the formation of this committee embodies Sri Lanka's continued support for Palestine and serves as a platform for strengthening parliamentary cooperation between the two countries and supporting the Palestinian cause in international frameworks.
After the election of the members of the Parliamentary Friendship Committee and the election of its chair, Dr. Heniduma Seneve, the current Minister of Culture and Religion in the Sri Lankan government, Ambassador Al-Tari addressed the parliamentarians, expressing his appreciation for Sri Lanka's steadfast stance on Palestine.
He emphasized the importance of the parliamentary role in supporting Palestinian rights, noting that this step comes at a critical time given the critical circumstances facing the Palestinian people.
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