Aid groups accuse Israel of ‘weaponizing aid' amid Gaza starvation
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Al Arabiya
a minute ago
- Al Arabiya
Germany calls on Israel to ‘stop settlement construction' in West Bank
Germany 'strongly' objects to an Israeli plan to build thousands of new homes in the West Bank, calling on the government to 'stop settlement construction' in the Palestinian territory. Berlin 'strongly rejects the Israeli government's announcements on thousands of new settlements in the Israeli occupied areas of the West Bank,' the foreign ministry said in a statement. Israel's finance minister backed plans on Thursday to build 3,400 homes in a particularly contentious area of the occupied West Bank, calling for the territory's annexation in response to several countries' plans to recognize a Palestinian state. The United Nations chief warned that building Israeli homes in the area would 'put an end to' hopes for a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Israel has long had ambitions to build on the sensitive parcel of land east of Jerusalem known as E1, but the plan has been frozen for decades amid international opposition. Israeli settlements in the West Bank are considered illegal under international law, while critics and the international community have warned construction on the roughly 12 square kilometers would undermine hopes for a contiguous future Palestinian state with east Jerusalem as its capital. The site sits between the ancient city and the Israeli settlement of Maale Adumim, near routes connecting the north and south of the Palestinian territory. There are also separate, frozen plans to expand Israel's separation barrier to envelop the area. 'Those who want to recognize a Palestinian state today will receive a response from us on the ground... Through concrete actions: houses, neighborhoods, roads and Jewish families building their lives,' said Bezalel Smotrich, Israel's finance minister, who was speaking at a pro-settlement event on the advancement of plans for the E1 parcel. 'On this important day, I call on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to apply Israeli sovereignty in Judea and Samaria, to abandon once and for all the idea of partitioning the country, and to ensure that by September, the hypocritical European leaders will have nothing left to recognize,' the far-right figurehead added, using the Biblical term for the West Bank, which Israel has occupied since 1967. Britain and France are among several countries to announce in recent weeks plans to recognize a Palestinian state later this year, saying they wanted to keep the two-state solution alive. 'Breach of international law' Stephane Dujarric, the spokesman for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, said 'If this went ahead -- which we call on the Israeli government not to do... it would sever the northern and southern West banks.' He added that 'it would put an end to the prospects of a two-state solution.' The Palestinian foreign ministry condemned the plans and called for 'genuine international intervention and the imposition of sanctions on the occupation to compel it to halt the implementation.' 'Colonial construction in the E1 area is a continuation of the occupation's plans to destroy the opportunity for the establishment of a Palestinian state,' it added. The European Union's chief diplomat, Kaja Kallas, said the plan 'further undermines the two-state solution while being a breach of international law' and called on Israel 'to desist.' Saudi Arabia also condemned the move 'in the strongest possible terms.' Israeli NGO Peace Now, which monitors settlement activity in the West Bank, denounced the E1 plan as 'deadly for the future of Israel and for any chance of achieving a peaceful two-state solution.' The NGO said the final approval hearing would be held next Wednesday by a technical committee under the defense ministry that has already rejected all objections to the proposals. After the bureaucratic steps are completed, 'infrastructure work in E1 could begin within a few months, and housing construction within about a year,' Peace Now said. The West Bank is home to around three million Palestinians, as well as about 500,000 Israeli settlers.
Al Arabiya
4 hours ago
- Al Arabiya
Saudi Arabia condemns Israeli approval of settlement construction around Jerusalem
Saudi Arabia on Friday strongly condemned Israeli authorities' approval to build settlements around Jerusalem, according to a statement from the Saudi foreign ministry. The statement also denounced comments by Israel's foreign minister rejecting the establishment of a Palestinian state, calling them a violation of international law and of the Palestinian people's 'inalienable' right to self-determination and statehood. It cited relevant UN Security Council resolutions, particularly Resolution 2234 (2016), which calls on Israel to halt settlement activity in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and affirms the illegality of Israeli settlements on land occupied since 1967. The statement also referred to the advisory opinion of the International Court of Justice, which 'affirmed the illegality of annexing occupied Palestinian territory and stressed the need to end the Israeli occupation.' The foreign ministry said these decisions and statements highlight the Israeli government's ongoing 'illegal expansionist policies, its obstruction of peace efforts, and the serious threat posed to the possibility of a two-state solution.' It stressed that this situation requires the international community to assume its legal and moral responsibilities, provide protection for the Palestinian people, and uphold their legitimate rights, including recognition of a Palestinian state. This also means obliging Israel to stop its assault on Gaza, end its illegal actions in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, and 'halt crimes against the Palestinian people – particularly those amounting to genocide – while holding perpetrators accountable.' Riyadh also reaffirmed its 'absolute rejection of Israeli policies based on settlement expansion, forced displacement, and denying Palestinians the exercise of their legitimate rights.' It called on the international community, especially the permanent members of the UN Security Council, to take immediate action to compel the Israeli authorities to 'end their crimes against the Palestinian people and the occupied Palestinian territories, and to comply with UN resolutions and international law.'
Arab News
6 hours ago
- Arab News
EU, Norway, rights groups rap West Bank settlement plan
MAALE ADUMIM: Israeli far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich announced work would start on a long-delayed settlement that would divide the West Bank and cut it off from East Jerusalem, a move his office said would 'bury' the idea of a Palestinian state. The Palestinian government, allies, and campaign groups condemned the scheme, calling it illegal and saying the fragmentation of territory would rip up peace plans for the region. Standing at the site of the planned settlement in Maale Adumim on Thursday, Smotrich, a settler himself, said Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and US President Donald Trump had agreed to the revival of the E1 development. However, there was no immediate confirmation from either. 'Whoever in the world is trying to recognize a Palestinian state today will receive our answer on the ground, not with documents nor with decisions or statements, but with facts. Facts of houses, facts of neighborhoods,' Smotrich said. Israel froze construction plans at Maale Adumim in 2012, and again after a revival in 2020, because of objections from the US, European allies, and other powers who considered the project a threat to any future peace deal with the Palestinians. Restarting the project could further isolate Israel, which has watched some of its Western allies condemn its military offensive in Gaza and announce they may recognize a Palestinian state. Palestinians fear the settlement building in the West Bank — which has sharply intensified since the 2023 Hamas attack on Israel that led to the Gaza war — will rob them of any chance to build a state of their own in the area. In a statement headlined 'Burying the idea of a Palestinian state,' Smotrich's spokesperson said the minister had approved the plan to build 3,401 houses for Israeli settlers between an existing settlement in the West Bank and Jerusalem. In Maale Adumim, Smotrich said the plan would go into effect on Wednesday. Breaking the Silence, an Israeli rights group established by former Israeli soldiers, said what it called a land grab 'will not only further fragment the Palestinian territory, but will further entrench apartheid.' Nabil Abu Rudeineh, the Palestinian president's spokesperson, called on the US to pressure Israel to stop settlement building. 'The EU rejects any territorial change that is not part of a political agreement between the involved parties. So annexation of territory is illegal under international law,' European Commission spokesperson Anitta Hipper said. Norwegian Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide said the move by Smotrich, an ultra-nationalist in the ruling right-wing coalition who has long advocated for Israeli sovereignty over the West Bank, showed that Israel 'seeks to appropriate land owned by Palestinians in order to prevent a two-state solution.' Peace Now, which tracks settlement activity in the West Bank, said there were still steps needed before construction. However, if all goes through, infrastructure work could begin within a few months, and house building could start about a year later. 'The E1 plan is deadly for the future of Israel and for any chance of achieving a peaceful two-state solution. We are standing at the edge of an abyss, and the government is driving us forward at full speed,' Peace Now said in a statement. Consecutive Israeli governments have initiated, approved, planned, and funded settlements, according to Israeli rights group Yesh Din. Some settlers moved to the West Bank for religious or ideological reasons, while lower housing costs and government incentives drew others. They include American and European dual citizens. Palestinians were already demoralized by the Israeli military campaign, which has killed more than 61,000 people in Gaza, according to local health authorities, and fear Israel will ultimately push them out of that territory. About 700,000 Israeli settlers live among 2.7 million Palestinians in the West Bank and East Jerusalem. Israel annexed East Jerusalem in a move not recognized by most countries, but has not formally extended sovereignty over the West Bank. The UN and most world powers say settlement expansion has eroded the viability of a two-state solution by fragmenting Palestinian territory. The two-state plan envisages a Palestinian state in East Jerusalem, the West Bank, and Gaza, existing side by side with Israel. Most of the global community considers all settlements illegal under international law. Israel rejects this interpretation, saying the West Bank is 'disputed' rather than 'occupied' territory. Britain, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand imposed sanctions in June on Smotrich and another far-right minister who advocates for settlement expansion, accusing both of them of repeatedly inciting violence against Palestinians in the West Bank.
