'Israel's new settlement plan to undermine two-state solution': UN special envoy

As Israel is planning to build hundreds of housing units for Israeli settlers in Jerusalem, the Middle East envoy warned the security council that the action would further weaken the chances of reaching a two-state solution. While speaking at the UNSCO meet, the UN special coordinator for the Middle East peace process, Tor Wennesland, said that the construction of almost 3,500 settlement units by Israel in the West Bank would hamper the peace process in the region. "We should have no illusions about the current state of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict," Wennesland said, describing a situation in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT) that continues to deteriorate, with no progress towards a two-state solution.

 "Israeli and Palestinian civilians are suffering and paying a steep price for the persistence of the conflict, including the protracted occupation," added Wennesland in a statement released on Tuesday. 

Watch: UN special coordinator speaking at UNSCO meet

Notably, 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. Further, the envoy stressed that the settlement activity sponsored by the Israeli government would further ignite the conflict in the region, resulting in the killing of both Israeli and Palestinian civilians. The UN envoy described nightly clashes between Israeli and Palestinian citizens and underscored that all perpetrators of violence must be held accountable and swiftly brought to justice.

He noted that Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett planning to construct houses near the northeast of East Jerusalem would cut the connection between the northern and southern West Bank. "I reiterate that all settlements are illegal under international law and remain a substantial obstacle to peace," said the envoy. "We can no longer lurch from crisis to crisis…incident by incident, on a short-term day-to-day basis as stand-alone issues”, he said in a statement and called for a broader package of parallel steps by Israel, the Palestinian Authority and the international community that addresses the key political, security and economic challenges that are barring progress.

Palestine Warns Israeli Govt of its dire outcomes over their settlement plans in Jerusalem

Earlier on October 15, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas warned the Israeli government of its dire consequences, in response to the settlement plans. "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.  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. 

With inputs from AP

Image: Twitter/UNSCO/AP