Israel promises to halt construction on West Bank, Palestine pledges cooperation

Jordan hosted a meeting between Israeli and Palestinian delegations on Sunday, Feb 26. The meeting comes amid rising tensions on the West Bank and Gaza Strip. At the meeting in Jordan, both Israeli and Palestinian delegations pledged to de-escalate violence. The talks in Jordan is the first such conversation between Israel and Palestine in years. The meeting was attended by officials from the US as well as Egypt.  

What Israel, Palestine promised at meet 

Israel officials have pledged to halt settlement construction in the West Bank for the next four months. Meanwhile, the Palestinian bloc also pledged to restore security cooperation in the West Bank which it suspended last month following the Israeli Army raid in the area. The move from the Palestinian authorities came after several Palestinian groups both political and Military have urged the officials to withdraw from the talks.

The five parties involved in the meeting also recognised the importance of upholding  “unchanged the historic status quo at the holy sites in Jerusalem in word and practice, and emphasised in this regard the Hashemite Custodianship / special role of Jordan.”

The US position on Israel-Palestine tensions

“The two sides (Palestinian and Israeli sides) affirmed their commitment to all previous agreements between them, and to work towards a just and lasting peace. They reaffirmed the necessity of committing to de-escalation on the ground and to prevent further violence,” the US Department of State asserted in a statement.

In the meeting at the port city of Aqaba on Sunday, the two sides promised to take concrete steps towards restoring security and cooperation in the Israel-occupied West Bank. The meeting occurred after a rise in instances of violence following the air raid in the West Bank by the Israeli forces which led to the death of nine Palestinians. 

Bloodiest year on record since 2000s

2022 was the bloodiest year on record in the Israel-Palestine conflict since the Palestinian uprising in the 2000s. At least 62 Palestinians, including armed fighters, have already died in the war this year, according to the Guardian.  

The Sunday statement also concluded that the five parties have also agreed to convene again in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt in March to achieve the goals listed in the meeting.