Latest news with #Ramallah
Arab News
a day ago
- General
- Arab News
Egypt's foreign minister urges end to Israeli war in Gaza during call with Witkoff
LONDON: Egypt's Foreign Minister, Badr Abdelatty, stressed the urgent need for an immediate cessation of Israeli aggression against the Gaza Strip during a phone call with Steve Witkoff, the US President's Special Envoy to the Middle East. Abdelatty emphasized that alleviating the humanitarian suffering in the Palestinian coastal enclave must be a priority for the international community and called for unconditional access to humanitarian aid. He emphasized that a just and lasting solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict requires a comprehensive political settlement that aligns with President Trump's vision for sustainable peace in the Middle East, the Emirates News Agency reported. Abdelatty was a member of the Ministerial Committee designated by the Joint Extraordinary Arab-Islamic Summit on Gaza, which Israel prevented from visiting the occupied West Bank on Sunday to meet with Palestinian officials in Ramallah. Arab ministers from Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Jordan, and Egypt, along with the Secretary-General of the Arab League, condemned what they described as the "arrogant" decision by Israel to block their visit and its rejection of any peace efforts.
LBCI
2 days ago
- General
- LBCI
Israel blocks Ramallah meeting with Arab ministers, Israeli official says
Israel will not allow a planned meeting in the Palestinian administrative capital of Ramallah, in the occupied West Bank, to go ahead, an Israeli official said on Saturday, after media reported that Arab ministers planning to attend had been stopped from coming. The delegation included ministers from Jordan, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates, according to Palestinian Authority officials. The ministers would require Israeli consent to travel from Jordan to the West Bank. An Israeli official said the ministers intended to take part in "a provocative meeting" to discuss promoting 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 said. "Israel will not cooperate with such moves aimed at harming it and its security." A Palestinian Authority official stated that the issue of whether the meeting in Ramallah would proceed was under discussion. Reuters
The National
2 days ago
- Business
- The National
More countries expected to recognise 'our state' at upcoming conference, says Palestinian minister
More countries are expected to recognise a Palestinian state at an upcoming UN conference in New York, a Palestinian minister has said, amid growing international support, and mounting pressure on Israel to end its war in Gaza. Major partners of Israel have become more critical over the war, the chaotic nature of the country's humanitarian aid scheme and its expansion of settlements in the occupied West Bank. "Arab states are our backbone. We have seen this during the collective voicing of disapproval of displacement of Palestinians, by all Arab states - which paid off, because that idea has been put aside for the time being," Palestinian Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Varsen Aghabekian told The National. Ms Aghabekian said the anticipated recognition of Palestine by additional countries at the UN conference, scheduled for June 17–20 and led by France and Saudi Arabia, will not be merely "symbolic". High-level participation will hold "everyone" to account and bring an opportunity to "revive a credible peace process", she said. While it remains unclear whether the US will be among the countries recognising Palestine as a state, Ms Aghabekian said she would "love" to see that happen. Currently, 149 of the 193 UN General Assembly member states recognise Palestine. Ms Aghabekian recently concluded a diplomatic tour that included several European nations. Speaking to The National from Ramallah, she said there has been a noticeable shift in global perspectives, not only on the Palestinian cause but also on Israel. "There has been some shift ... and some countries are using a new narrative we've not heard before," she said in an apparent reference to the sharper tone adopted by the UK, Canada and France. They warned Israel this month that they could impose targeted sanctions if it continues to broaden its war on Gaza and to expand settlements in the West Bank. But even after this criticism, Israel on Thursday approved 22 new settlements, reflecting what the Palestinian official said is the need for a two-pronged approach that does not rely solely on the recognition itself. "It would mean a lot if this was accompanied by measures on the ground to hold Israel accountable ... but again, it doesn't mean a lot to the people on the ground who have had their homes demolished and suffocated by the occupation," she said. This change in perspective, Ms Aghabekian added, was influenced by the scenes in Gaza during "Israel's genocidal war", which has killed more than 54,000 Palestinians and wounded 123,492 since October 2023, according to Gaza's health officials. She also criticised "Israel's growing belligerence". On Friday, Israeli media reported that Israel will prevent a delegation of Arab foreign ministers from entering Ramallah to attend a planned meeting in the Palestinian administrative capital. "I don't think this comes as a shock to anybody. Israel has been following the exclusion policy for decades and is failing to understand that it needs to integrate in the region," Ms Aghabekian said. Most of the countries reportedly scheduled to visit Ramallah had normalised ties with Israel. The fact that even these are not being allowed in is "very telling and impedes further normalisation", the minister said. She noted that by not letting these countries visit - even to discuss peace - Israel is further propagating the idea that it does not wish to comply "with anyone" and would continue its aggression against the Palestinians.
Al Jazeera
3 days ago
- General
- Al Jazeera
Israel blocks planned West Bank visit by Arab foreign ministers
Israel says it will not allow a planned meeting of Arab foreign ministers in the Palestinian administrative capital of Ramallah in the occupied West Bank to go ahead, an Israeli official said. The delegation included ministers from Jordan, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates, Palestinian Authority officials said on Saturday, adding that the issue of whether the meeting planned on Sunday would be able to go ahead was still under discussion. 'The Palestinian Authority – which to this day refuses to condemn the October 7 massacre – 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,' the Israeli official said late on Friday. 'Israel will not cooperate with such moves aimed at harming it and its security.' The Arab ministers would require Israeli consent to travel to the occupied West Bank from Jordan because Israel controls the Palestinian territory's borders and airspace. The Israeli move came ahead of an international conference, co-chaired by France and Saudi Arabia, due to be held in New York on June 17-20 to discuss the issue of Palestinian statehood. Israel has come under increasing pressure from the United Nations and European countries which favour a two-state solution to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, under which an independent Palestinian state would exist alongside Israel. French President Emmanuel Macron said on Friday that recognising a Palestinian state was not only a 'moral duty but a political necessity'. Last week, Israeli forces opened fire near a diplomatic convoy near Jenin refugee camp in the occupied West Bank, triggering an international outcry. The convoy included diplomats from the European Union, the United Kingdom, Russia and China. The Israeli military claimed its soldiers fired 'warning shots' after the group deviated from an agreed-upon route. Israel has also allowed the expansion of illegal settlements in the occupied Palestinian territory, with the government announcing plans to establish 22 new settlements, including retroactively legalising a number of unauthorised outposts. The move has been condemned by Palestinian officials and global human rights groups. The International Court of Justice declared last July that Israel's longstanding occupation of Palestinian territories is illegal, and called for the evacuation of all settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem. Since the start of the Israeli war on Gaza on October 7, 2023, at least 972 Palestinians have been killed and more than 7,000 injured in attacks by the Israeli army and settlers across the occupied West Bank, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health. An estimated 1,139 people were killed in Israel during the Hamas-led attacks on October 7 and more than 200 were taken captive. Since then, at least 54,381 Palestinians have been killed in the Gaza Strip and 124,054 wounded, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry. The Strip's Government Media Office has updated the death toll to more than 61,700, saying thousands of people missing under the rubble are presumed dead.
Khaleej Times
3 days ago
- General
- Khaleej Times
Israel 'will not cooperate' with Arab ministers' West Bank visit: Official
An Israeli official has said the country "will not cooperate" with a visit to the West Bank by a group of Arab foreign ministers, after a Saudi diplomatic source said the kingdom's top diplomat would travel to Ramallah. "The Palestinian Authority - which to this day refuses to condemn the October 7 massacre - 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," the Israeli official said in a statement issued late Friday. Channel 12 reported the delegation included ministers from Jordan, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. Israel and the mentioned countries did not immediately comment on the reports.
