The foreign ministers of Egypt and 17 countries issued a joint statement condemning in the strongest terms the recent Israeli decisions expanding the scope of illegal control over the West Bank.
The statement was signed by the foreign ministers of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the Federative Republic of Brazil, the French Republic, the Kingdom of Denmark, the Republic of Finland, the Republic of Iceland, the Republic of Indonesia, Ireland, the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, the Kingdom of Norway, the State of Palestine, the Portuguese Republic, the State of Qatar, the Republic of Slovenia, the Kingdom of Spain, the Kingdom of Sweden, and the Republic of Turkey, in addition to the two Secretaries-General. The League of Arab States and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation,
The statement explained that these measures include reclassifying Palestinian lands as Israeli “state lands,” accelerating the pace of illegal settlement activity, and strengthening the consolidation of the Israeli administration, which represents a broad change in the existing reality on the ground.
The Ministers stressed that the illegal Israeli settlements, and the decisions to strengthen them, represent a flagrant violation of international law, including relevant Security Council resolutions and the 2024 Advisory Opinion of the International Court of Justice.
They considered that these steps come within a clear path aimed at imposing a new reality that paves the way for actual, unacceptable annexation, and undermines efforts aimed at achieving peace and stability in the region, including the twenty-point plan on Gaza, as well as threatening opportunities for regional integration.
The statement called on the government of Israel to immediately retract these decisions, abide by its international obligations, and refrain from taking any measures that would bring about permanent changes in the legal and administrative status of the occupied Palestinian territory.
The ministers indicated that these decisions come in light of an unprecedented acceleration in settlement policy, including the approval of the E1 project and the issuance of bids for it, considering that this represents a direct attack on the foundations of the establishment of the Palestinian state and on the possibility of implementing the two-state solution. They reiterated their rejection of any measures aimed at changing the demographic composition, character, or legal status of the Palestinian territories occupied since 1967, including East Jerusalem, while emphasizing opposition to any form of annexation.
They also called for an end to settler violence against Palestinians, and for those responsible for these violations to be held accountable, stressing the commitment to take concrete steps in accordance with international law to address settlement expansion and policies of forced displacement and annexation.
In the context of the holy month of Ramadan, the statement stressed the need to preserve the existing historical and legal status in Jerusalem and its holy places, while acknowledging the special role of the historical Hashemite custodianship, and condemning the repeated violations that threaten regional stability.
The ministers called for the immediate release of withheld tax revenues owed to the Palestinian Authority and their transfer in accordance with the Paris Protocol, given their fundamental importance in providing services to the Palestinian population in Gaza and the West Bank.
The statement concluded by affirming the firm commitment to achieving a just, comprehensive and lasting peace in the Middle East based on the two-state solution, in accordance with the Arab Peace Initiative and relevant United Nations resolutions, and on the borders of June 4, 1967, stressing that ending the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is a basic condition for achieving peace, stability and regional integration, and that coexistence between the peoples and countries of the region will not be achieved except by establishing an independent, sovereign and democratic Palestinian state.
