Modi's Israel visit: He should have visited Gaza, says Palestinians

Foreign ministers Jaswant Singh in 2000, SM Krishna in 2012 and Sushma Swaraj in 2016 did visit Palestine.

Prime Minister Modi's three-day visit to Israel is drawing lot attention in India and Israel but a section of people from Palestine are disappointed. While PM was received by a rousing welcome by the Jewish state, several people wanted the Indian PM to visit the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip, reports said.

A resident of Gaza is disappointed as PM Modi's visit is limited to Israel unlike their Indian predecessors who visited paid a visit to Palestine. Foreign ministers Jaswant Singh in 2000, SM Krishna in 2012 and Sushma Swaraj in 2016 did visit Palestine, reports Indian Express.

Fathi Tobail who owns a multimedia firm said, "He should have come to Palestine.'' "We believe India has good cooperation with Palestine and we wanted him to come to Gaza as well." Married to an Indian, Tobail says he has stayed in Chandigarh and now produces short films and manages websites in Gaza.

Tobail thinks India can cooperate with Palestine in the field of electricity as Gaza is faced with a scarcity of power. "India can cooperate in the field of electricity. If he had visited Palestine, we would have submitted a request to him about the scarcity of power in Gaza," he said.

Also, a journalist spoke on similar lines. Suhada Hammad said "We expected that he will come to Palestine and to Gaza. He should have come to see the situation here, talk to us about our issues, lives. Unfortunately, this time, it has not happened. Another time, we hope he will visit us."

A student, Ali Mohammad Abushbak, who wants an admission to Jamia Millia Islamia's mass communications programme, felt discriminated by the Indian government's approach. He said, "It's very sad that Modi did not come to Palestine. A lot of people believe the story of Israel but what about the Palestine story? We are feeling discriminated by this approach of the Indian government.

Historically, India framed its relationship with Israel based on a priority accorded to Palestine. In 1936, Jawaharlal Nehru informed the Zionist emissary Immanuel Olsvanger that he could not tolerate imperialism in India or Palestine.

OneIndia News