European powers condemn Israel settlement approvals in Palestine
A picture taken on October 13, 2020, shows the Har Gilo settlement in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, with the city of Jerusalem seen in the background. (Photo by MENAHEM KAHANA / AFP)

European Powers Condemn Israel Settlement Approvals In Palestine

October 17, 2020 2 Min Read

Dubai- Massader News

European powers on Friday condemned Israel’s decision to approve thousands more settlements in occupied Palestinian territory, calling it a “counterproductive” move that undermines regional peace efforts, accoding to France Press agency.

“The expansion of settlements violates international law and further imperils the viability of a two-state solution to bring about a just and lasting peace to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict,” said a joint statement from the foreign ministers of Germany, France, Britain, Italy and Spain.

“As we have emphasized directly with the government of Israel, this step furthermore undermines efforts to rebuild trust between the parties with a view to resuming dialogue,” they said, urging an immediate halt in settlement construction.

The ministers said pushing ahead with more settlements would be a “counterproductive move in light of the positive developments of normalization agreements reached between Israel, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain.”

The UAE and Bahrain had in mid-September set aside decades of enmity with Israel to sign a US-brokered deal to normalize ties.

Western powers had hoped the deals would bring regional stability and give a boost to hopes for peace.

But the Palestinians have branded the shift by the Gulf nations as “betrayal.”