Israel Summons Russian Ambassador in Protest of Moscow Hosting Hamas

On Sunday, November 7, Israel summoned the Russian ambassador to protest last week's hosting of a delegation from the Palestinian militant group Hamas. The Israeli Foreign Ministry stated that the invitation to Hamas was a "message legitimizing terrorism against Israelis." Israel described the summoning of the ambassador as a "protest" rather than a reprimand. Russia had characterized its hosting of Hamas as an effort to maintain contact with all parties involved in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Liav Hayat, spokesperson for the Israeli Foreign Ministry, previously wrote on X: "Hamas is a terrorist organization worse than ISIS. The hands of senior Hamas officials are stained with the blood of over 1,400 Israelis who were slaughtered, killed, and burned. They are also responsible for the abduction of over 220 Israelis, including infants, children, women, and the elderly." He called Moscow's invitation to senior Hamas officials an "unpleasant act in support of terrorism" and demanded their immediate expulsion. Linda Thomas-Greenfield, the U.S. representative to the United Nations, stated on Friday, November 5, during an emergency session of the UN General Assembly addressing the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians that UN resolutions should not be "one-sided." She also referred to a recent U.S. resolution proposed to the Security Council that emphasized the freedom of hostages and condemned Hamas, while reviving hope for a two-state solution, but was vetoed by Russia and China. The Hamas militant group killed at least 1,400 people and took over 200 hostages, including children, women, and the elderly, in an attack on Israel on October 7. The United States, Israel, the European Union, and Japan consider Hamas a terrorist group.