KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 25 — Malaysia will consider providing additional aid to support injured Palestinians if there is a need, said Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.

He said, however, that there have been no discussions yet about the next phase of assistance for the injured Palestinians.

"Thus far, there has been no development on the next phase. The initial phase focused on providing medical care (injured Palestinians being brought to Malaysia), and those Palestinians who have (recovered) will be repatriated. We are adopting a calm and measured approach for the time being.

"Later, we will negotiate with Egypt (which has hosted Palestinians), as well as with Saudi Arabia, Turkiye, and Qatar. We will evaluate if further discussions are needed. For now, our priority is to ensure that the people are treated and healthy first. It is too early to make further decisions.

He said this to reporters after officiating the Malaysia Mosque for Al-Aqsa and Palestine (MM4AP) Conference, in conjunction with the International Day of the Mosque 2024, at the Kuala Lumpur Federal Territory Mosque this morning.

On August 15, Malaysia transported 41 injured Palestinians, including an eight-month-old baby, to receive further treatment at a military hospital in Kuala Lumpur. This humanitarian mission, operated by the Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF), flew the patients from Cairo to Kuala Lumpur.

Meanwhile, the conference held today was also attended by the Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Religious Affairs) Datuk Mohd Na’im Mokhtar and his deputy, Dr Zulkifli Hasan and Datuk Seri Ahmad Awang, co-chairman of the MM4AP.

About 1,000 representatives of mosques and NGOs, foreign envoys, scholars and observers from several countries also attended the conference. The event was organised by the Consultative Council of Islamic Organisations of Malaysia (MAPIM), in collaboration with the Alliance of World Masjid in Defence of Al Aqsa and the Asian Ulama Council Secretariat. — Bernama