Jordan, along with 10 Arab, Islamic states denounce Israeli Knesset vote on West Bank sovereignty
The statement, issued by Jordan, Bahrain, Egypt, Indonesia, Nigeria, Palestine, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, the League of Arab States, and the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation, described the move as a blatant and unacceptable violation of international law and a flagrant breach of relevant UN Security Council resolutions, foremost among them Resolutions 242 (1967), 338 (1973), and 2334 (2016), all of which affirm the invalidity of all measures and decisions that seek to legitimize the occupation, including settlement activities in the Palestinian territory occupied since 1967.
The signatories reaffirmed that Israel has no sovereignty over the Occupied Palestinian Territory, stressing that this unilateral Israeli move has no legal effect and cannot alter the legal status of the Occupied Palestinian Territory, foremost among it East Jerusalem, which remains an integral part of the Occupied Palestinian Territory.
They also emphasized that such Israeli actions would only fuel the growing tension in the region, which has been exacerbated by the Israeli aggression on the Gaza Strip and the resulting humanitarian catastrophe in the Strip.
The statement also called on the international community, including the Security Council and all relevant actors, to shoulder their legal and moral responsibilities, and to act to halt Israel's illegal policies aimed at imposing a fait accompli by force, undermining the prospects for a just and lasting peace, and the prospects of the two-state solution.
They also reaffirmed their commitment to the two-state solution based on international legitimacy and the Arab Peace Initiative, and to the realization of an independent, sovereign Palestinian state on the June 4, 1967 lines, with East Jerusalem as its capital.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Jordan News
2 hours ago
- Jordan News
Jordan Participates in International Conference on Implementing the Two-State Solution in New York - Jordan News
Jordan is participating in the 'Two-State Solution' conference, which kicks off Monday at the United Nations headquarters in New York, with the presence of 123 countries as well as regional and international organizations involved in the Middle East peace process. اضافة اعلان Jordan is represented at the three-day conference by Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates, Ayman Safadi. Safadi, alongside Spanish Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares, will take part in a roundtable session as part of three international working groups under the theme: 'Two States, One Future: Sovereignty, Security, and Economic Viability' — focusing on ways to enhance political stability, shared sovereignty, and economic development. Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Ambassador Sufyan Qudah emphasized in a press statement last Friday the importance of this high-level international conference — co-chaired by Saudi Arabia and France — in supporting a peaceful resolution to the Palestinian issue and advancing the implementation of the two-state solution. The goal, he said, is to garner global support for broader recognition of the State of Palestine as the only path to achieving just, comprehensive, and lasting peace in the region. Ambassador Qudah reiterated Jordan's unwavering position in working with Arab and international partners to support the Palestinian people's right to freedom, end the occupation, and establish their independent state on their national soil. Jordan consistently affirms — in both Arab and international forums — the centrality of the Palestinian cause and the need to launch a credible political process that leads to the implementation of the two-state solution, based on internationally agreed references. This includes the establishment of a sovereign, independent Palestinian state on the June 4, 1967 lines, with East Jerusalem as its capital, as the only path to true and lasting peace in the region. Nearly 150 countries currently recognize the State of Palestine, which holds observer status at the United Nations, though it has not yet been granted full membership by a Security Council vote. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs also welcomed the announcement by French President Emmanuel Macron of his country's intention to officially recognize the State of Palestine during the upcoming UN General Assembly session in September — a move seen as a step in the right direction toward realizing the two-state solution and ending the occupation. The conference will feature a series of official statements and sessions with prominent participants, including: Slovenia's Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign and European Affairs Tanja Fajon Luxembourg's Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Xavier Bettel Pakistan's Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Mohammad Ishaq Dar Iraq's Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein Lebanon's Deputy Prime Minister Tarek Mitri EU Commissioner for the Mediterranean Dubravka Šuica Egypt's Minister of Foreign Affairs and Migration Badr Abdel Aaty Speeches will also be delivered by representatives from Morocco, Syria, Chile, South Africa, Brazil, Portugal, Kuwait, Spain, Norway, Mauritania, Canada, Bahrain, Denmark, Yemen, Japan, China, Germany, Italy, Austria, Ireland, the Netherlands, the UK, UAE, Greece, Finland, Lithuania, Sweden, Azerbaijan, Switzerland, Russia, Croatia, Turkey, Algeria, India, Oman, Iran, Australia, the Czech Republic, Somalia, Cuba, Angola, Guyana, Mexico, Guinea, Bulgaria, Romania, Kazakhstan, Ecuador, Thailand, and Tajikistan. In addition, representatives from major organizations will attend, including the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation, the League of Arab States, the Gulf Cooperation Council, the African Ministers' Council on Water (AMCOW), the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, and the Parliamentary Assembly of the Mediterranean. The conference is jointly chaired by French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot and Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud. It will open with a concluding session for the eight working groups, followed by a general session featuring addresses by the co-chairs, the UN Secretary-General, and the President of the UN General Assembly. The conference comes at a critical juncture for peace efforts in the Middle East, amid growing threats to the two-state solution, including illegal settlement expansion, unilateral actions, violence, and policies of forced displacement and dispossession of Palestinians.
Ammon
5 hours ago
- Ammon
Jordan takes part in UN Two-State Solution Conference in New York
Ammon News - Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign and Expatriate Affairs Ayman Safadi will take part in the "Two-State Solution" conference, which convenes on Monday at the United Nations headquarters in New York with the participation of 123 countries and international and regional organizations. Jordan will join a roundtable session held under one of three international working groups, titled "Two States, One Future: Sovereignty, Security, and Economic Viability," to discuss ways to advance political stability, shared sovereignty, and economic development.
Ammon
5 hours ago
- Ammon
Israel's declaration of sovereignty over the West Bank: A violation of international law
In a dangerous and unprecedented step, the Israeli Knesset announced its intention to impose Israeli sovereignty over the West Bank. This move represents a new escalation in the Palestinian-Israeli conflict and constitutes a flagrant violation of the principles of public international law, international humanitarian law, and United Nations conventions. It also undermines the peace agreements concluded with Jordan, Egypt, and the Palestine Liberation Organization. The West Bank, including East Jerusalem, is part of the territories occupied by Israel following the 1967 war. The United Nations has repeatedly affirmed the legal status of these territories, considering them occupied territories that Israel may not annex or impose its sovereignty over in any way. The Knesset's declaration of Israeli sovereignty over the occupied territories constitutes a violation of the principle of "the inadmissibility of the acquisition of territory by force," established by the Security Council on November 22, 1967. The Security Council unanimously adopted Resolution 242 (1967), which "affirmed the inadmissibility of the acquisition of territory by war" and called for "the withdrawal of Israeli armed forces from territories occupied in the recent conflict." This is a fundamental principle of international public law. This declaration also contravenes Article 2 of the UN Charter, which stipulates respect for the territorial integrity of states and the right of peoples to self-determination. It also contravenes the 1949 Geneva Conventions, particularly the Fourth Convention, which prohibits an occupying power from transferring its civilian population into the territory it occupies. Israel has been practicing this practice for many years through settlement expansion, and today it is attempting to give domestic legal legitimacy to these illegal practices. By declaring sovereignty over the West Bank, Israel violates a series of United Nations resolutions affirming Palestinian rights and calling for an end to the Israeli occupation of the territories occupied in 1967. The most important of these resolutions are: Resolution 181 of 1947 (the Partition Resolution): This provided for the establishment of two states in Palestine, one Arab and one Jewish, with the internationalization of Jerusalem. This resolution constitutes the legal basis for the establishment of Israel itself. Therefore, ignoring this resolution constitutes a violation of the principle of international legitimacy. Resolution 242 of 1967: This resolution called on Israel to withdraw from the territories it occupied in the 1967 war, including the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. This resolution constitutes one of the most important foundations upon which the subsequent peace process was built. Resolution 338 of 1973: This resolution called for a ceasefire and the implementation of Resolution 242, paving the way for the launch of the political process in the Middle East. Resolution 446 of 1979 and subsequent resolutions such as 465 (1980) and 471 (1980): which consider the construction of settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories illegal and demand that Israel cease such settlement activities. Resolution 2334 of 2016: which reaffirmed the illegality of the settlements and called on Israel to immediately and completely cease all settlement activities in the occupied Palestinian territories, including East Jerusalem. In addition, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) affirmed in its 2004 Advisory Opinion on the Separation Wall that the West Bank is an occupied territory and that all Israeli actions aimed at altering its demographic and geographic character are illegal. On July 19, 2024, the ICJ issued a landmark Advisory Opinion declaring that the Israeli occupation and its associated system of systematic discrimination—which amounts to a system of racial segregation and/or apartheid—are illegal. Based on this illegality, the resolution calls on the occupying state of Israel to end the occupation and its associated regime, evacuate the settlements, dismantle the Separation Wall, provide full reparations, and allow the return of displaced Palestinians. Finally, the Court stated that Member States and the United Nations are under an obligation not to recognize the aforementioned illegal or unlawful practices and to refrain from supporting their maintenance, and that the United Nations must consider the precise modalities and additional measures necessary to bring this illegal situation to an end as soon as possible. The declaration of sovereignty represents a clear violation of the Jordanian-Israeli Peace Treaty signed in Wadi Araba in 1994, which stipulated Israel's respect for the June 4, 1967, borders as the basis for any settlement. It also violates the Camp David Accords with Egypt signed in 1979, which affirmed the Palestinians' right to self-rule as a step toward a comprehensive settlement. The Oslo Accords signed between the Palestine Liberation Organization and Israel in 1993 stipulated that the West Bank and Gaza Strip are disputed territories whose fate is to be decided through final status negotiations. Any attempt to unilaterally annex them would be considered a nullification of this agreement and a violation of Israel's contractual obligations as a party to it. This declaration was widely condemned by Arab and Islamic countries, most notably Jordan, which considers the West Bank to be part of Jordan's national security. The European Union also issued statements affirming that any such step undermines the two-state solution and threatens stability in the region. The United Nations, however, deemed the unilateral step illegal and without any impact on the legal status of the Palestinian territories. International bodies have also expressed their fear that this step could ignite a new wave of violence and extinguish any remaining chance of reviving the peace process, especially under a right-wing Israeli government that embraces extremist settlement tendencies. The Knesset's declaration of sovereignty over the West Bank embodies an attempt to impose a fait accompli by force of occupation. However, it clashes with the wall of international law and UN resolutions, which remain a solid legal reference for a solution, despite attempts to obscure or circumvent them. No matter how much Israel tries to manipulate terminology or impose new policies, the West Bank remains, from the perspective of international law, occupied Palestinian territory, over which any Israeli sovereignty has no legitimacy. A just and comprehensive peace remains contingent on ending the occupation and respecting the Palestinian people's right to self-determination and the establishment of an independent state on the 1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital.
