US tried to pressure Malaysia over Israel war stance, prime minister says

Malaysia’s Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim has said the United States sought to pressure the country over its stance on Israel’s war in Gaza.

In remarks delivered to the country’s parliament, Ibrahim said “the Malaysian envoy to the United States was called by the American authorities, who questioned our stance on the conflict, especially the violence inflicted by Israel on Gaza.

“Our ambassador firmly stated our position,” he added, according to the Straits Times.

The US had apparently taken umbrage at Malaysia’s refusal to condemn Hamas.

“I was informed by the foreign ministry that Malaysia received a demarche from the US Embassy twice, on 13 October and 30 October, where Malaysia was asked to use diplomatic channels to urge a country to not take advantage of the conflict by using a proxy to get involved in the Gaza conflict,” he added.

That country in question is widely assumed to be Iran, the Straits Times said.