Egypt condemned in the strongest terms on Monday the decision of the Israeli government to “legitimize” settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories and the construction of new settlement units.
It stressed that this resolution represents a flagrant violation of the resolutions of the Security Council and the United Nations (UN) and the relevant rules of international law, which emphasizes the illegality or legality of settlement activity in all its forms, and considers it an unacceptable provocative act coinciding with the holding of the conference of support for Jerusalem in Cairo.
Egypt also warned of the consequences of this decision, which will inflame the highly heated situation in the occupied territories, in a way that threatens the expansion of the scope and frequency of violence, and will have serious repercussions on the security and stability of the entire region.
It demanded the immediate cessation of all unilateral measures by Israel, including the demolition of houses, arrests and raids targeting the Palestinian people and their property.
Egypt stressed that the only way to calm the situation is to stop those practices that are contrary to international laws, which are rejected by the human conscience.
It demanded to create the atmosphere to return to the negotiating table with a view to reaching a solution to the Palestinian issue on the basis of decisions of international legitimacy, achieving a comprehensive and just peace in which the independent Palestinian state lives side by side with Israel in peace and security.
For his part, the Secretary-General of the Arab League, Ahmed Aboul Gheit, condemned in the strongest terms the decision of the Israeli government to legitimize a number of outposts and its plans to build new settlement units in the West Bank.
Aboul Gheit considered that the resolutions perpetuate the abhorrent Israeli disregard for the will of the international community and reflect the extreme nature of the new Israeli government, in a way that threatens to inflame the situation in the occupied territories and poses a threat to regional stability.
The spokesperson of the secretary-general, adviser Jamal Rushdie, quoted Aboul Gheit as confirming that the legalization of settlements reflects Israel’s disregard for international law and the decisions of international legitimacy, which considers all settlements in the occupied territories illegal and outside the law.
He stressed that the international community must shoulder its responsibilities in the face of this blatant case of delegitimisation and disregard for international law and its principles, and deal with the policies of the Israeli government with the same standards that it applies to all other international issues, without duplication or discrimination.
