Was there really any difference between the official statements of PM Modi and India on the Israel-Hamas war? Why was there panic in the Arab world?

When the extremist organization Hamas attacked Israel, all the western countries of the world were seen standing with Israel. India was also one of them. He stood shoulder to shoulder with Israel and its PM Benjamin Netanyahu. PM Modi also tweeted in support of Israel and also spoke to Netanyahu on phone. Five days later, an official comment came from India’s Ministry of External Affairs. On behalf of the Ministry of External Affairs, it was said that India has long believed in its support for the establishment of a sovereign and independent state of Palestine. PM Modi’s pro-Israel tweets are being retweeted across the Arab world, along with it it is being claimed that the statements of India’s External Affairs Ministry and PM Modi on Israel-Palestine at the leadership level are different.

India’s diplomacy shifting towards Israel

Hassan Alhassan, Middle East expert at IISS Within hours of the Hamas attack the Indian Prime Minister took a very partisan, very clear stance by tweeting on Twitter that India stands in solidarity with Israel. Referring to the possible consequences of this stance, he said that India has now linked its reputation with Israel’s response. Echoing Alhassan’s view, Abdul Khalid Abdullah, Professor of Political Science at IISS, said India’s position was in solidarity with the Palestinian cause for a long time. Then there was a gradual shift toward recognizing Israel and deepening strategic ties with it. Today, it has shifted completely to Israel. It has even begun to associate itself with it, to the point of declaring support for its aggression against Gaza.

Overseas Indians in Arab countries will be affected

Additionally, the way the Arab world views India could have an impact on the huge Indian diaspora living in the Middle East or West Asia. Alhassan expressed concern over heightened communal tensions if India’s domestic politics spills over to the Indian diaspora in the Gulf. He recalled the rise in anti-Muslim sentiments by the Indian far-right in 2020 which affected NRIs (non-resident Indians) in the Gulf. If India’s own positions on domestic politics spread to Indians in the diaspora, we could see an increase in communal tensions. So we saw it in 2020 when anti-Muslim sentiments created by Indians by the far right in India spread to the diaspora, Gulf countries and through comments and social media posts by Indians in the diaspora. Gulf and this has generated a community reaction from people who are saying that Gulf countries should not tolerate this.

Statement of PM Modi and Foreign Ministry

Tweets along these lines have been made by influential people and Arabs on social media. One handle wrote that they live among us and with us and unfortunately they (NRIs) have become the majority in the Gulf countries. They are a greater threat to the Arabs than Israel and its atrocities. There is a threat coming to India, which is increasing. On October 7, the Prime Minister had written on the X social media platform that ‘Deeply shocked by the news of terrorist attacks in Israel. Our thoughts and prayers are with the innocent victims and their families. We stand in solidarity with Israel during this difficult time. Only five days later India gave its first detailed comment on India’s position on Palestine. Indian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said in his weekly media briefing on October 12 that India has always been firm on the question of Palestine. Our policy in this regard has been long-term and consistent. India has always advocated the resumption of direct negotiations with Israel for the establishment of a sovereign, independent and viable State of Palestine living within secure and recognized borders at peace. However, the statement coming from India seemed somewhat strange to the Arab countries. Japan Times columnist Kuni Miyake said that PM Modi’s statement on social media is unexpected in the context of India’s traditional relations with the Arab world.