MOSCOW, December 13. /TASS/. Russian Presidential Envoy for the Middle East and Africa, Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov has received, at their request, the ambassadors of the League of Arab States (LAS) and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) member countries of the Committee on the Gaza Strip, the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

Palestinian ambassador Abdel Hafiz Nofal, Jordanian envoy Khaled Shawabkeh, Indonesia's Jose Tavares, Qatari ambassador Ahmed bin Nasser bin Jassim Al Thani, Egyptian envoy Nazih Nagari and Turkey's Tanju Bilgic, as well as Saudi Arabia's Charge d'Affaires Mohammed Saad Bin Tuoalah briefed the senior Russian diplomat on the committee's activities, which was established following the Riyadh summit on November 11 and is composed of the foreign ministers of the aforementioned countries, with the aim of consolidating international efforts in the interest of an early de-escalation in the conflict zone.

"During the conversation, the sides pointed to the common position in favor of the urgent achievement of a durable ceasefire and the provision of assistance to the population of the Gaza Strip suffering from the ongoing hostilities and their dire humanitarian consequences. The rejection of attempts to forcibly transfer Palestinians from the Gaza Strip was underlined. The need for close cooperation in the UN and its Security Council was noted, including for the adoption of a resolution that meets the interests of long-term stabilization of the situation," the statement said.

The Russian side reiterated that there is no alternative to a comprehensive Palestinian-Israeli settlement through negotiations, which should lead to the establishment of an independent Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital within the 1967 borders. The sides also agreed to continue coordinating efforts aimed at overcoming the acute phase of the crisis and moving the situation in a political direction.