AMMAN — A presidential statement
issued by the UN Security Council on Monday expressed "deep concern and
dismay" with Israel's plans to legalize its West Bank outposts and dramatically
expand settlement construction, according to Haaretz.
اضافة اعلان
The statement is in place of a UN
resolution, which Palestinian officials had been urging but US officials
averted via mediation.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken recently
held discussions on the situation with United Arab Emirates Foreign Minister
Sheikh Abdullah Bin Zayed, whose country was behind the planned resolution, as
well as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian President Mahmoud
Abbas.
The discussions culminated in a deal on
Sunday to forego the resolution in favor of the presidential statement, which
is weaker and not legally binding, according to multiple diplomats familiar
with the situation.
Suspending unilateral actionsTo avoid a vote on the draft resolution,
the diplomats said the US convinced both Israeli and Palestinian sides to agree
in principle to a six-month freeze of all unilateral actions.
On the Israeli side, that means a
commitment to not expanding settlements until at least August, according to the
diplomats. On Monday, a statement from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin
Netanyahu’s office said Israel would not approve any new settlements in the
West Bank beyond nine outposts that it had approved retroactively earlier this
month.
"We consider this to be a green light for continuing the violations and crimes of the occupation against our land, our people, and our sanctities."
On the Palestinian side, the diplomats said
the freeze means a commitment until August not to pursue action against Israel through
the UN or other international bodies such as the World Court, the International
Criminal Court, and the UN Human Rights Council.
The text of the statementThe presidential statement reiterates the
international community's decision that "continuing Israeli settlement
activities are dangerously imperiling the viability of the two-state solution
based on the 1967 lines." It further notes that all parties must meet
their international obligations and commitments, while strongly underscoring
its opposition to unilateral measures including home demolitions and civilian
displacement.
The statement also denounces all acts of
violence against civilians, including terrorism, calling on all parties to
condemn and hold accountable those responsible for violence against civilians.
The Security Council additionally called
for all parties to refrain from provocation aimed at deescalating the situation
on the ground, highlighting the need to maintain the status quo of Al Aqsa
Mosque, while issuing concerns about religious-based discrimination and both
parties' obligation to protect civilian and humanitarian workers under
international humanitarian law.
Prime Minister Netanyahu condemned the “one-sided
statement”, saying it “denies the rights of Jews to live in our historic
homeland” and protesting that the US should never have backed it.
Response from HamasOn Monday, Hamas criticized the issuance of
the statement in the place of a resolution condemning the settlement policies
and crimes of the occupation against the Palestinian people, according to news
outlets.
In a press release, the movement expressed
that the move allows the Security Council to avoid assuming its
responsibilities under international norms.
"We consider this to be a green light
for continuing the violations and crimes of the occupation against our land,
our people, and our sanctities," the press release said.
The movement specifically called on the
international community and the Security Council to take practical and
deterrent action against the occupation and its settlement policies, “not just
to voice its concerns, which has never served to effectively end settlement
activity”.
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