CAIRO, Feb 23 (MENA) – The foreign ministers of Egypt, France, Denmark, Iceland, Indonesia, Ireland, Jordan, Luxembourg, Palestine, Portugal, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Slovenia, Spain and turkey, along with the secretaries-general of the Arab League and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, strongly condemned a series of recent Israeli decisions introducing wide-ranging expansions of what they described as Israel’s illegal control over the West Bank.
The measures include extensive reclassification of Palestinian land as so-called “Israeli state land,” the acceleration of illegal settlement activity, and the further entrenchment of Israeli administrative control, a joint statement read Monday.
The ministers underscored that Israeli settlements and decisions aimed at consolidating them constitute a flagrant violation of international law, including relevant UN Security Council resolutions and the 2024 advisory opinion of the International Court of Justice.
They noted that the recent decisions form part of a clear trajectory toward altering realities on the ground and advancing what they termed unacceptable de facto annexation.
The measures, they added, undermine ongoing efforts to achieve peace and stability in the region, including the Twenty-Point Plan for Gaza, and threaten any genuine prospects for regional integration.
The ministers called on the Israeli government to immediately reverse the decisions, uphold its international obligations, and refrain from any actions that would bring about permanent changes to the legal and administrative status of the occupied Palestinian territory.
They added that the steps come amid an unprecedented acceleration in Israel’s settlement policy, including approval and tendering of the E1 project, describing such measures as a direct and deliberate assault on the viability of a Palestinian state and the implementation of the two-state solution.
The ministers reiterated their rejection of all measures aimed at altering the demographic composition, character and legal status of the occupied Palestinian territory since 1967, including Al Quds (occupied East Jerusalem), and expressed opposition to any form of annexation.
Amid what they described as an alarming escalation in the West Bank, the ministers also called on Israel to put an end to settler violence against Palestinians and to ensure accountability for those responsible.
They reaffirmed their commitment to taking concrete steps, in accordance with international law, to address the expansion of illegal settlements, as well as policies and threats of forced displacement and annexation.
The statement stressed the importance of preserving the historical and legal status quo in Al Quds and its holy sites, recognizing the special role of the Hashemite custodianship in this regard, condemning repeated violations of the status quo in Jerusalem, and warning that such actions pose a threat to regional stability.
The ministers urged Israel to immediately release withheld tax revenues owed to the Palestinian Authority and transfer them in line with the Paris Protocol, stressing that these funds are vital for providing essential services to Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank.
They renewed their firm commitment to achieving a just, comprehensive and lasting peace in the Middle East on the basis of the two-state solution, in line with the Arab Peace Initiative, relevant UN resolutions, and the June 4, 1967 lines.
As stated in the New York Declaration, they affirmed that ending the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is imperative for achieving peace, stability and regional integration, stressing that coexistence among the peoples and states of the region can only be realized through the establishment of an independent, sovereign and democratic Palestinian state. (MENA)
