SINGAPORE'S Muslim community on Friday urged all parties in the Gaza conflict to work towards ending the conflict.
Islamic religious leaders made the call during Friday prayers, as they read a sermon prepared by the Islamic Religious Council of Singapore's Office of the Mufti.
'As a community that appreciates peace and values harmony, we urge all parties involved in this crisis to work seriously towards ending this cycle of violence.
'The situation will only worsen if parties involved refuse to find a peaceful settlement,' read the five-page sermon.
The message - which was read at mosques in either English, Malay or Tamil - also asked Muslims to pray for peace to return to the region.
It then called for the protection of the civilians in Gaza who are facing a deepening humanitarian crisis.
'The number of casualties and those suffering from injuries are on the rise. Many residents of Gaza have lost shelter, and food supplies are running low,' the message said.
'At all times, human rights must be protected, and the value of human lives must be upheld and respected, especially the lives of innocent civilians.'
In a separate sermon that preceded the one on Gaza, the Mufti stressed that Islam values human life, peace and justice.
Friday's message adds to growing calls both in Singapore and across the world for a swift end to the fighting.
Four Muslim organisations here earlier this week issued a joint statement condemning the 'disproportionate and excessive use of force by Israel'.
They called for both Israel and Hamas to lay down arms, saying 'violence begets violence'.
In two weeks since Israel began their air strike on Gaza, at least 600 people have been killed, many of them civilians.
Israel launched an air raid on Dec 27 retaliating against what it said are rocket attacks from the Hamas-ruled Gaza.
