New Delhi, May 11 (IANS): Maulana Arshad Madani, the President of the Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind, has condemned the recent Israeli attack on Palestinians, calling it an act of cruelty and barbarism, as he described the assaults as a serious attack on humanity.

"The truth is that due to the silence of the international community, and especially the Muslim countries, Israel is now making a vicious attempt to deprive the unarmed and helpless Palestinian people of their right to live," Madani said.

He also said that the world could not dare to deny the historical fact that Israel is a usurper country which has occupied the land of Palestine with the backing of some world powers. And now, as a result of this silence, Israel seeks to wipe out the Palestinian people from this land, he said.

Madani said that since its occupation, Israel has been oppressing the Palestinian people.

"There have been countless attempts at reconciliation and settlement, but all of them have been in vain. As a result of the covert support of some powerful countries, Israel has been trampling on the resolutions passed by the United Nations on Palestine from time to time," he said.

"And now after the establishment of diplomatic relations with Muslim countries, Israel's malicious daring has increased so much that it does not hesitate to target Palestinian men and women and even innocent children engaged in worship at the Al-Aqsa Mosque," Madani said.

He also said that if the Muslim countries remain silent, this issue will not be limited to the borders of Palestine. If they do not wake up now, it will be too late by tomorrow, he said.

"Had the Muslim countries initially assessed the importance and seriousness of this issue and developed an effective joint strategy for Palestine, Israel could not have dared to oppress the Palestinian people," Madani said.

At least 163 Palestinians and six Israeli police officers were hurt recently in clashes in Jerusalem, Palestinian medics and Israeli police said, the BBC reported.

Most were injured at the Al-Aqsa mosque, where Israeli police fired rubber bullets and stun grenades as Palestinians threw stones and bottles.

Madani termed the latest assaults as a serious attack on human rights and said that even today's civilized world, which claims to be the herald of peace and unity, is silent on it.