Palestine warns Israeli govt of its dire outcomes over their settlement plans in Jerusalem
President Mahmoud Abbas's office said that the plans will cut off the city from its Palestinian surroundings. Such projects are a dare to international laws.
- World News
- 3 min read
As Israel is planning to build hundreds of housing units for Israeli settlers in Jerusalem, the Palestinian President on October 15, Friday, warned the Israeli government of its dire consequences, the official Palestinian news agency (WAFA) reported. According to the news agency, President Mahmoud Abbas's office said that the plans will cut off the city from its Palestinian surroundings.
"Such projects are a dare to international law and international legitimacy, the signed agreements and the assurances repeatedly expressed by the United States government, in which it affirmed that it considers settlement expansion and unilateral measures an unacceptable act, WAFA news agency quoted President office's statement as saying.
Further, the official statement urged US President Joe Biden to maintain positions and implement the announcement made during the telephonic conversation. According to the news agency, President Mahmoud Abbas was assured by the Biden administration of accepting and promoting any unilateral measures taken by the Israeli government. It is worth mentioning that the US-sponsored talks between Israel and the Palestinians stopped in 2014 following disagreements on Israeli settlement and the recognition of establishing a Palestinian state on the 1967 border.
"Israel's plan to establish the new settlements will push matters to a point of no return and will push the region into more tension and explosion," WAFA news quoted the President office as saying in a statement.
'The position is no longer sustainable': Abbas
The Palestine presidential office further said that the blueprint announced by Abbas during his recent speech before the United Nations (UN) is clear, and outlines an important action in which he emphasised that the position is no longer sustainable, reported WAFA news agency. The statement from Abbas office came at such a crucial time when he held talks with two Israeli ministers and discussed the peace process between the two sides on October 4. According to the news agency, the meeting was held with Israeli Minister of Health Nitzan Horowitz and Minister of Regional Cooperation Issawi Frej.
During the meeting, Abbas stressed the importance to end the Israeli occupation and achieve a comprehensive peace in the region, through the implementation of international resolutions. Notably, this comes after Israel's ambassador to the United States, Gilad Erdan, while speaking at the United Nations General Assembly session, said that his country was always in support of discussions with the Palestinian. However, he noted that Israel maintained preconditions that worked as the biggest hurdle in initiating conversation. Israel occupied the West Bank and East Jerusalem, which are claimed by the Palestinians, in the 1967 Middle East war and has controlled them ever since.