Russia urges for 'collective action' on Israel-Gaza conflict

Russia on Monday called for "collective action" to end fighting between Israel and Hamas, including an international conference, almost a month into the war that has left thousands dead.

Russia, which has been waging a large-scale military operation in Ukraine for more than 20 months, has also repeatedly criticised Western policies in the Middle East.

Moscow maintains ties with both Hamas and Israel and has said it can mediate the conflict.

"Against the backdrop of the unprecedented escalation of violence in the zone of the Palestinian-Israel conflict there are more and more calls for collective action to de-escalate the situation in the Middle East, including an international conference," Russia's foreign ministry said in a statement.

It said Moscow "actively supports" such calls and that it was in favour of a "multilateral approach" in regulating the conflict.

"As history has shown, attempts to 'monopolise' mediating functions have led not to regulating conflicts, but to the escalation that we are witnessing," it added.

President Vladimir Putin has said Moscow can play a mediating role in the conflict, but officials have so far reached no breakthrough on freeing hostages held in Gaza or ending fighting.

Moscow launched a diplomatic efforts to try to free more than 200 hostages Hamas took during its attack on Israel last month.

At least eight Russian citizens are believed to be among them.