20 Countries Including Indonesia Condemn Israel's Expansion of Colonisation in the West Bank

Foreign ministers from 20 Arab, Islamic and European countries have strongly condemned Israel’s decision to expand its illegal control over the occupied West Bank, urging Israel to reverse the decision which threatens to kill the two-state solution.

This was conveyed in a joint statement issued by the foreign ministers of Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Egypt, Jordan, Kuwait, Palestine, Turkey, Brazil, France, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Indonesia, Ireland, Norway, Spain, Sweden, Slovenia, Luxembourg and Portugal, as well as the secretaries-general of the League of Arab States and the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation.

The statement, published by the Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs on the official X platform, affirmed that Israel’s recent decision to reclassify Palestinian land as “state land,” accelerate settlement activity, and strengthen Israeli governance in the occupied territories constitutes a flagrant violation of international law and Security Council resolutions, and contradicts the advisory opinion of the International Court of Justice in 2004.

The statement called on the Israeli government to immediately reverse its decision, refrain from making permanent changes to the legal status of the occupied Palestinian territories, end settler violence, and hold accountable those responsible for violations against the Palestinian people in the West Bank.

According to Al Jazeera, the ministers emphasised the importance of preserving the historical and legal status quo in East Jerusalem and its holy sites, and recognised the special role of Jordan’s historic custodianship. They warned that Israel’s repeated violations of the status quo in Jerusalem pose a threat to regional stability.

The statement also called on Israel to immediately release and transfer Palestinian tax revenues withheld in accordance with the Paris Protocol, given the importance of providing basic services to Palestinian citizens in Gaza and the West Bank.

The statement concluded by reaffirming commitment to achieving a just, comprehensive and lasting peace in the Middle East based on the two-state solution, in line with the Arab Peace Initiative and United Nations resolutions, and based on the borders of 4 June 1967, emphasising that ending the Palestinian-Israeli conflict is a prerequisite for achieving regional stability and integration.

Last week, the Israeli government approved a decision permitting the seizure of Palestinian land in the West Bank by registering it as “state property,” a move that drew condemnation from Arab countries and the international community.

On 8 February, the Israeli Security Cabinet approved a series of decisions aimed at bringing about changes in the legal and civil reality in the occupied West Bank, with the objective of strengthening Israeli control over the territory, including expanding Israeli oversight and law enforcement authority to encompass areas administered by the Palestinian Authority.

Since the start of Israel’s war in the Gaza Strip on 8 October 2023, occupation forces have intensified their operations in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, encompassing killings, arrests, displacement and settlement expansion, in actions that Palestinians view as aimed at imposing new realities on the ground.

According to official Palestinian data, these operations have resulted in the deaths of more than 1,115 Palestinians, the wounding of approximately 11,500 others, and the arrest of some 22,000 Palestinians in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem.