Foreign
SAUDI Arabia on Wednesday, condemned Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s plans to annex the Jordan Valley in the West Bank if he wins the elections.
The Saudi royal court made the remark in a statement carried by official news agency SPA.
“Saudi Arabia declares its condemnation and denunciation of the Israeli prime minister’s intention to annex lands from the West Bank occupied in 1967 and considers this measure as totally null.’’
The kingdom stressed the move was a “dangerous escalation against the right of the Palestinian people and a violation of the charter of the UN and international law.’’
On Tuesday, following a meeting of Arab foreign ministers, the Arab league said in a statement that Netanyahu’s announcement undermines any prospects to achieve peace.
Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi also condemned the announcement as a dangerous escalation that undermines the foundations of peace and pushes the whole region towards violence and conflict.
Netanyahu said on Tuesday that he would apply Israeli sovereignty over the Jordan Valley, in the West Bank, if he wins the elections.
Israel has occupied the West Bank since the 1967 war and hundreds of thousands of Jewish Israelis are now living in the territory, which is claimed by Palestinians for their future state.
NAN reports that UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres said the move would be “devastating” to the prospects of revived peace negotiations.
Also, the Arab League, an organisation of 22 states, said Netanyahu’s plan was a “dangerous development” that would violate international law and “torpedo” the foundations of peace.
Senior Palestinian official Hanan Ashrawi said the plan was “unquestionably reprehensible” and a “threat to international peace and security”.
“This announcement is a declaration of war against the Palestinian people’s rights as well as the very foundations of the international rule-based order,” she said. (dpa/NAN)
– Sept. 11, 2019 @ 12:05 GMT |
Tags: Saudi Arabia condemns Netanyahu’s plans to annex parts of West Bank
