KUALA LUMPUR, April 13 (Bernama) -- Malaysians who wish to channel their contributions for the Palestinian cause are advised to do so through a legitimate bank account that is managed by the Malaysian Foreign Ministry (Wisma Putra), said Palestinian Ambassador to Malaysia Walid Abu Ali.

The ambassador reiterated that this facility is created to enable Malaysians to contribute and ensure that their contributions reach the Palestinians.

“During the last five years, I tried to emphasise that (for) any contributions that need to be shared to Al-Aqsa mosque, West Bank, Gaza Strip and any Palestinians, we had reactivated a bank account under Malaysian Foreign Ministry (Wisma Putra) officially for the purpose of transparency. We never ask to contribute to the embassy.

“Any contributions can go through to this bank account (of) which the money will be directed immediately to the fund, sponsored by our partner in Jordan – the Hashemite Fund chaired by Prince Ghazi, the first cousin of Jordan’s King Abdullah II,” he said in a press conference today, held in response to the latest development on Israeli’s aggression at the Al-Aqsa Mosque complex and forcibly removing Palestinian worshippers for two nights in a row as they gathered for Ramadan prayers.

Subsequently, international media reported that the Israeli military, on April 7, launched airstrikes in Lebanon – hours after it struck the Gaza Strip. 

In a related development, Walid expressed his sincere appreciation and gratitude to the Malaysian King, Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri'ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah, the government and its people for maintaining a consistent position on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

“While the world might turn a blind eye to the Palestinian suffering for decades, Malaysia, on the other hand, chooses not to meet with silence the ongoing barbarity and criminality of Israeli forces and settlers during this holy month of Ramadan,” he said.

The ambassador said the embassy also expressed appreciation to Wisma Putra for its contribuition amounting US$50,000 to Al-Aqsa Mosque through Jordan’s Ministry of Awqaf and Islamic Affairs.

Malaysia also contributed a sum of US$30,000 to the Ministry of Education of Palestine for solar system facilities for two schools in West Bank – a joint collaboration project between the Malaysian Embassy in Jordan and the Education Ministry of Palestine – in addition to the US$44,179 which was distributed to Global Peace Mission (GPM) Malaysia for home reconstruction project in Gaza.

“Once again, Malaysia has proven to be one of the strongest supporters and defenders of the Palestinian cause,” he added.

 Malaysians can channel their contributions for the Palestinian cause through Tabung Akaun Amanah Kemanusiaan Rakyat Palestin under the purview of Wisma Putra.

All donations (cash/cheque) can be channelled to CIMB Islamic Bank (Account No. 8600302489) under the recipient name of ‘Akaun Amanah Kemanusiaan Rakyat Palestin, Kementerian Luar Negeri’.

-- BERNAMA