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Middle East Eye
4 hours ago
- Politics
- Middle East Eye
Israel blocks Arab ministers from occupied West Bank visit
A delegation of Arab foreign ministers has condemned Israel's decision to block their planned visit to the occupied West Bank. The delegation - including ministers from Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Jordan and Bahrain - was scheduled to meet Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in Ramallah on Sunday. However, the visit was postponed after Israeli authorities warned late Friday that they would deny the ministers entry, according to the Jordanian foreign ministry. As the occupying power controlling the West Bank's border with Jordan, Israel's approval was required for the delegation to travel. In a joint statement, the ministers denounced the move as a 'violation of Israel's obligations as an occupying power' and said it reflected 'the arrogance of the Israeli government, its disregard for international law, and its ongoing illegitimate policies". New MEE newsletter: Jerusalem Dispatch Sign up to get the latest insights and analysis on Israel-Palestine, alongside Turkey Unpacked and other MEE newsletters The Palestinian ambassador to Saudi Arabia told local media the visit was meant to underscore the importance of the Palestinian cause to Arabs and Muslims. An Israeli official, speaking to the Ynet news outlet, described the planned meeting as a 'provocative' attempt to promote the establishment of a Palestinian state. 'Such a state would undoubtedly become a terrorist state in the heart of the land of Israel,' the official claimed. 'Israel will not cooperate with efforts that threaten its security.' Saudi Arabian Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan, who was set to lead the delegation, would have been the highest-ranking Saudi official to visit the occupied West Bank in nearly 60 years. The incident comes as Israel faces mounting international pressure to support a two-state solution, backed by the United Nations and several European governments. In June, Saudi Arabia and France are set to co-chair an international conference in New York to discuss the future of Palestinian statehood.
New York Times
4 hours ago
- General
- New York Times
Israel Bars Arab Foreign Ministers From High-Level West Bank Visit
The Israeli government has barred foreign ministers from a number of Arab states, including Jordan and Saudi Arabia, from visiting the Israeli-occupied West Bank to meet with Palestinian leaders, the Jordanian government said on Saturday. A Jordanian foreign ministry statement said the delegation had planned to meet in the West Bank city of Ramallah on Sunday with Mahmoud Abbas, the president of the Palestinian Authority, which administers parts of the territory. A visit by such high-ranking Arab officials to the West Bank would have been very unusual. The Israeli government refused to comment. Among those slated to attend was Faisal bin Farhan, the Saudi foreign minister. He would have been the first Saudi foreign minister to visit the West Bank in recent memory, according to Palestinian officials. Officials from Bahrain and Egypt had also been expected. The visiting officials had planned to confer with Mr. Abbas ahead of a June conference led by France and Saudi Arabia, expected to take place in New York, to discuss the creation of an independent Palestinian state. Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister, is strongly opposed to the idea. But Israel's war with Hamas in Gaza has already prompted a few European countries — including Spain, Norway and Ireland — to formally recognize a state of Palestine in the hopes of jump-starting the long-dormant Middle East peace process. Since the war began almost 20 months ago, Israel has killed more than 54,000 Palestinians in Gaza, a second Palestinian territory, according to local health officials who do not distinguish between civilians and combatants. The war began after Hamas led the Oct. 7, 2023 attack on southern Israel. About 1,200 people were killed, mostly civilians, and about 250 people were taken hostage, according to Israel. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
Yahoo
4 hours ago
- General
- Yahoo
Arab officials put off rare West Bank trip over Israeli 'obstruction'
Top Arab diplomats, who had planned to make a rare visit to the West Bank, have decided to postpone the trip due to "Israel's obstruction", Jordan said on Saturday. An Arab delegation led by the Saudi foreign minister had originally planned to travel from Jordan to the West Bank city of Ramallah on Sunday to meet Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas in what would have been the first such high-level visit since Israel occupied the Palestinian territory in 1967. "The committee decided to postpone the visit to Ramallah in light of Israel's obstruction of its mission by refusing the delegation entry through airspace in the occupied West Bank controlled by Israel," the Jordanian Foreign Ministry said. The ministers slammed the reported Israeli decision, calling it a "flagrant violation of Israel's obligations as the occupying power," the ministry added in a statement posted on the social media platform X. There was no official Israeli comment on the visit. The delegation includes the foreign ministers of Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Jordan and other countries, the Saudi state television Al Ekhbariya reported earlier this week. The broadcaster quoted the Palestinian ambassador to Riyadh as saying the team planned during the Ramallah visit to discuss drumming up international support for Palestinian statehood ahead of a conference on a two-state solution to the Palestinian problem, including the creation of a Palestinian state alongside with Israel. Saudi Arabia and France are due to co-chair the conference in New York on June 17-20. The Israeli media outlet ynet quoted an Israeli official as saying that "such a state would undoubtedly become a terrorist state in the heart of the land of Israel."
Saudi Gazette
5 hours ago
- Politics
- Saudi Gazette
Arab ministers condemn Israeli ‘ban' on planned West Bank visit: Jordan
Saudi Gazette report RIYADH — The foreign ministers of five Arab countries who had planned to visit the occupied West Bank this weekend condemned on Saturday Israel's decision to block their plans. The ministers condemned 'Israel's decision to ban the delegation's visit to Ramallah on Sunday to meet with Palestine President Mahmoud Abbas,' the Jordanian foreign ministry said. Ministers from Egypt, Jordan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates had been expected to take part alongside Turkey. Earlier, the Arab delegation, headed by Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan, planned to visit Ramallah as part of the mission of the Arab-Islamic Ministerial Committee seeking to halt the war in the Gaza Strip, secure the entry of aid, and find a political horizon to end the Israeli occupation. The visit was planned following the last meeting of the committee in Madrid during which it discussed developments in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. They stressed the importance of implementing the two-state solution based on relevant international resolutions, ensuring the Palestinian people's right to establish an independent state on the June 4, 1967 lines, with East Jerusalem as its capital. Meanwhile, Dr. Riyad Mansour, Palestinian representative to the United Nations, said that Saudi Arabia will take important steps regarding the recognition of the Palestinian state, while simultaneously anticipating, through the diplomatic street program, the recognition of the Palestinian state by 10 Western countries. At the same time, the Arab Ministerial Committee's actions are consistent with the beginning of preparations to mobilize recognition of Palestine through the conference on Palestine, co-chaired by Saudi Arabia and France in June. The conference is scheduled to be held in New York. The majority of UN member states, as well as observer states from other countries and regional blocs, have expressed their full support for the efforts made by the Kingdom and France to hold the conference. They affirmed their support for the two-state solution as the only internationally agreed-upon option. They also emphasized the importance of achieving practical results, including recognition of the State of Palestine, rejection of all attempts at annexation and forced displacement, and the need to support the Palestinian government and UNRWA.
RTÉ News
5 hours ago
- Politics
- RTÉ News
Arab ministers condemn Israel 'ban' on planned West Bank visit
The foreign ministers of five Arab countries who had planned to visit the occupied West Bank this weekend have condemned Israel's decision to block their plans. The ministers condemned "Israel's decision to ban the delegation's visit to Ramallah (on Sunday) to meet with the president of the State of Palestine, Mahmoud Abbas", the Jordanian foreign ministry said. Ministers from Egypt, Jordan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates had been expected to take part alongside Turkey and the secretary-general of the Arab League. Israel had announced late yesterday that it would not cooperate, effectively blocking the visit as it controls the territory's borders and airspace. Mr Abbas "intended to host in Ramallah a provocative meeting of foreign ministers from Arab countries to discuss the promotion of the establishment of a Palestinian state," said a statement attributed to an unidentified official. "Such a state would undoubtedly become a terrorist state in the heart of the Land of Israel. Israel will not cooperate with such moves aimed at harming it and its security." Had the visit gone ahead, the delegation's head Prince Faisal bin Farhan would have become the first Saudi foreign minister to visit the West Bank. Israel this week announced the creation of 22 new Jewish settlements in the West Bank, regarded by the United Nations as illegal under international law and one of the main obstacles to a lasting peace between Israelis and Palestinians. During a visit to one of the new settlement sites yesterday, Defence Minister Israel Katz vowed to build a "Jewish Israeli state" in the Palestinian territory. Taking aim at foreign countries that would "recognise a Palestinian state on paper", he added: "The paper will be thrown into the trash bin of history, and the State of Israel will flourish and prosper." In June, Saudi Arabia and France are to co-chair an international conference at UN headquarters meant to resurrect the two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Saudi Arabia was said to have been close to recognising Israel before the start of the Gaza war, and US President Donald Trump, during a recent visit to Riyadh, called normalisation between the countries "my fervent hope and wish". But de facto ruler Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has said Saudi Arabia will not recognise Israel without an independent Palestinian state.
