Pakistan, other Muslim countries condemn Israel's illegal West Bank control measures

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and seven other Muslim countries have condemned Israel’s repeated violations of ceasefire in Gaza and new Israeli measures to tighten control of the West Bank and pave the way for more settlements on the occupied Palestinian territory.

In a joint statement issued by foreign ministers of Pakistan, Egypt, Jordan, United Arab Emirates, Indonesia, Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Qatar, they strongly condemned the illegal Israeli decisions and measures aimed at imposing unlawful Israeli sovereignty, entrenching settlement activity, and enforcing a new legal and administrative reality in the occupied West Bank. They reaffirmed that Israel has no sovereignty over the occupied Palestinian territory.

The ministers warned against the continued expansionist Israeli policies and illegal measures pursued by the Israeli government in the occupied West Bank, which fuel violence and conflict in the region.

They expressed their absolute rejection of these illegal actions, which constitute a blatant violation of international law, undermine the two-state solution, and represent an assault on the inalienable right of the Palestinian people to realize their independent and sovereign state on the 4 June 1967 lines, with occupied Jerusalem as its capital. Such actions also undermine the ongoing efforts for peace and stability in the region.

The ministers stated that these illegal measures in the occupied West Bank are null and void and constitute a clear violation of UN Security Council resolutions, particularly Resolution 2334. This resolution condemns all Israeli measures aimed at altering the demographic composition, character, and status of the Palestinian territory occupied since 1967, including East Jerusalem.

The International Court of Justice, which found that Israel’s policies and practices in the occupied Palestinian territory and its continued presence is illegal, in its 2024 advisory opinion affirmed the necessity of ending the Israeli occupation, and nullifying the annexation of occupied Palestinian lands.