“A violation of international law.” Arab condemnation of an Israeli decision allowing settlement expansion

Arab countries and organizations widely condemned on Saturday an Israeli decision allowing the expansion of settlement operations in the West Bank, warning of dire consequences and denouncing Tel Aviv's violation of international law.

This came in statements issued by the foreign ministries of Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain, Egypt and Jordan, in addition to the Gulf Cooperation Council and the League of Arab States.

The Arab rejection came after the Israeli Broadcasting Authority announced that the security cabinet approved a plan on Thursday that includes “legalizing 5 settlement outposts in the West Bank and issuing tenders to build thousands of housing units in the settlements.”

Outposts are small settlements established by settlers on private Palestinian land without the approval of the Israeli government.

Serious consequences

In response, the Saudi Foreign Ministry expressed the Kingdom's "condemnation and denunciation" of the cabinet's decision, and affirmed its "categorical rejection of the ongoing Israeli violations of international law and international legitimacy resolutions."

She warned of "the dire consequences of the Israeli occupation authorities continuing to do so in light of the complete absence of international accountability mechanisms."

In Doha, the Qatari Foreign Ministry strongly condemned the Israeli occupation’s decision to expand settlements in the West Bank, and considered it a new episode in the series of its ongoing violations of international legitimacy resolutions, especially Security Council Resolution 2334.

The Security Council adopted Resolution 2334 on 23 December 2016, “demanding that Israel (the occupying power) cease all settlement activities in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and recognizing the illegality of Israel’s establishment of settlements in the territory occupied since 1967.”

The Qatari Foreign Ministry warned that "the occupation policy based on expanding settlements and forcibly displacing the Palestinian people, in addition to its ongoing brutal war on the Gaza Strip, constitutes an obstacle to efforts aimed at preventing the expansion of the cycle of violence in the region and achieving comprehensive and just peace."

In this context, she stressed "the need for the international community to line up to force the Israeli occupation to stop its unilateral measures and comply with international legitimacy resolutions, especially at this delicate time."

In Kuwait, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs expressed the country's strong condemnation and denunciation of the Israeli occupation's expansion of its settlement operations in the West Bank.

She reiterated the State of Kuwait's position rejecting any settlement operations in the occupied Palestinian territories, and considered it a "flagrant violation of international conventions."

In Manama, the Bahraini Foreign Ministry expressed the kingdom's "strong condemnation and denunciation of the Israeli Security Cabinet's decision to expand settlements in the occupied West Bank and legalize five settlement outposts."

The Ministry considered that "this decision constitutes a flagrant violation of the principles of international law and resolutions of international legitimacy, and a serious threat to international efforts aimed at bringing about just and comprehensive peace in the region by establishing an independent Palestinian state on the borders of June 4, 1967, with East Jerusalem as its capital."

Violation of international law

In Cairo, the Egyptian Foreign Ministry said the country "condemns the Israeli government's decision to legalize five settlement outposts in the West Bank and plan to build thousands of new settlement units."

She stressed that this is "a clear continuation and persistence in the policy of violating international law and Security Council resolutions."

Egypt strongly denounced "Israel's exploitation of the ongoing war in the Gaza Strip to perpetuate further illegal settlement expansion and attempt to change the legal status in the occupied Palestinian territories, including East Jerusalem."

She called on "the international community to intervene to stop the illegal Israeli measures and practices, the ongoing violations of the rights of the Palestinian people, and to intensify efforts to immediately end the catastrophic humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip."

In Amman, the Jordanian Foreign Ministry condemned the Israeli decision, warning that it "consecrates the occupation of Palestinian lands through the expansion and legalization of settlement construction."

It also considered the Israeli move “a blatant challenge and a grave violation of international law and international legitimacy resolutions.”

The Jordanian Foreign Ministry stressed "the necessity of stopping the escalating settler terrorism in the occupied West Bank, and stopping the unilateral, illegal and unlawful Israeli measures that undermine all chances of achieving a just, lasting and comprehensive peace, based on the two-state solution."

"Coup" against Oslo

At the level of Arab organizations, the Gulf Cooperation Council condemned the Israeli occupation government’s decision to expand settlement operations in the West Bank.

The Secretary-General of the Gulf Cooperation Council, Jassem Al-Budaiwi, affirmed, “The Cooperation Council’s categorical rejection of the Israeli occupation forces’ continued and systematic violations of international law and international legitimacy resolutions.”

Al-Badawi pointed out that "the continuation of these dangerous policies by the Israeli occupation authorities will lead to instability and insecurity in the region."

In a related context, the Secretary-General of the Arab League, Ahmed Aboul Gheit, in a statement on Saturday, condemned the Israeli decision itself, considering it “a complete and final coup against the Oslo Accords, a return of the entire situation to before point zero, and a consolidation of the logic of crude occupation.”

The Oslo Agreement dates back to September 13, 1993, between the Palestine Liberation Organization and Israel, and includes arrangements for Palestinian self-government in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.

Aboul Gheit called on "the international community to see the Israeli government for what it is, as a racist, right-wing government that is not interested in peace and seeks to dismantle any manifestation of the Palestinian Authority, including in the areas of the West Bank classified as Category B, which according to the Oslo Accords are subject to Palestinian civilian control."

On Friday, the Israeli Broadcasting Authority reported that the measures approved by the cabinet on Thursday include “cancelling various permits and benefits for senior officials in the Palestinian Authority, withdrawing executive powers from the Authority in the southern West Bank, and implementing the law against illegal construction there.”