Malaysia appoints consuls in West Bank, Gaza
The Malaysian Foreign Minister announced the appointment of two consuls for his country in Ramallah and Gaza, in a move that Palestinian Authority could interpret as a Malaysian recognition of Gaza as a separate entity
Malaysian Foreign Minister Saifuddin Abdullah announced Dec. 28 the appointment of honorary consuls for his country in Gaza and Ramallah. This follows an announcement by Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad at the Non-Aligned Summit in Azerbaijan on Oct. 25 that his country intends to open an embassy accredited to Palestine but located in Jordan.
Abdullah expressed hope to see the embassy open this year; he said Malaysia would not locate the embassy in Ramallah to avoid having to deal with Israel over the matter. He said Malaysia seeks to obtain Jordan’s consent to open the embassy.
After Hamas’ takeover of Gaza in 2007, the ambassadors to the Palestinian Authority (PA) all relocated to Ramallah. They only visit Gaza for several hours. But Malaysia’s recent decision may carry a new approach, which Hamas welcomes and the PA sees as a surprising and apparently unwelcome development.
The Palestinian Foreign Ministry in Ramallah declined to comment to Al-Monitor.
