Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al- Muallem and visiting Japanese special envoy to the peace process Tatsu Arima discussed on Thursday the "dangerous deterioration" in the Palestinian territories, the official SANA news agency reported.

Muallem called on the international community to shoulder the responsibility over the Israeli crimes against the Palestinians, SANA said.

For his part, the Japanese official highlighted Syria's " important and pivotal" role in the peace process and achieving stability in the Middle East.

On Nov. 1, Israel launched a large-scale military operation, dubbed "Autumn Clouds," in the northern Gaza Strip with the aim of stemming rocket attacks on southern Israel from the Palestinian side.

Operation Autumn Clouds had killed at least 64 Palestinians and wounded more than 250 before Israel announced the end of the operation on Monday.

On Wednesday, the Israel tank shells struck houses in the northern Gaza town of Beit Hanoun, killing at least 18 Palestinians and wounding dozens of others.

The deadly Israeli bombardment drew criticism from Arab world immediately.

Source: Xinhua