China will continue to take strong measures to safeguard its own legitimate rights and interests, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian said on Thursday in Beijing.
Lin made the remarks in response to a media query after China reminded its nationals to make a full assessment of the risks before traveling to the U.S..
"The situation you mentioned is caused by the U.S.’s hegemonic and bullying acts of exerting maximum pressure. These actions have weakened the social and public foundations of China-U.S. relations and have hindered exchanges and cooperation between the two countries in multiple fields. China will continue to take strong measures to safeguard its own legitimate rights and interests," said the spokesman.
China vows stronger measures to safeguard its rights, interests: spokesman
Ongoing Israeli military operations in Gaza and the West Bank have led to multiple deaths, arrests, and rising tensions, as both sides report violence and economic fallout.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) issued a statement on Monday, saying that during operations in the southern Gaza Strip that day, IDF troops killed three "militants" who had crossed the "yellow line" of the military ceasefire. The statement added that IDF forces would remain deployed in the area and would continue operations to eliminate threats.
On the same day, the Palestinian Ministry of the Interior in the Gaza Strip issued a statement saying that Mahmoud Al-Astal, head of the police investigation department in Khan Younis, southern Gaza, was shot and killed. According to sources, Al-Astal was a key member of the Palestinian Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas). A Palestinian armed group in Gaza, backed by Israel, claimed responsibility for the shooting on Monday.
According to a report by the official Palestinian news agency on Monday, Israeli forces continued their raids across several areas of the West Bank and around Jerusalem, arresting more than 20 Palestinian residents and injuring one person. In some areas, the Israeli forces also conducted house searches, imposed roadblocks, and leveled farmland. Meanwhile, large numbers of Israeli Jewish settlers, under the protection of the Israeli military, entered Palestinian farmlands to graze livestock, damage olive trees, and assault Palestinian shepherds while attempting to seize animals, leading to clashes with local residents.
The Palestinian Ministry of Agriculture released a comprehensive report on Monday, saying that in 2025, the agricultural sector in the West Bank suffered systematic attacks by Israeli forces and Israeli Jewish settlers, resulting in direct economic losses exceeding 103 million U.S. dollars, an intensity rarely seen in recent years.
Tensions escalate as IDF operations continue in Gaza, West Bank
