London (UNA-OIC) – The United Kingdom on Wednesday condemned Israeli settlement activities in the occupied Palestinian territories, particularly a plan to build over 1,200 units in a new settlement between Jerusalem and Bethlehem, saying they violate international law and calling for suspending them.
“Israel’s decision to advance the construction of 1,257 settlement buildings in the Givat HaMatos area of the occupied West Bank, would violate international law, and risks causing serious damage to the prospects for a viable Palestinian State,” said James Cleverly, Minister for the Middle East and North Africa, in the UK’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office.
“We condemn this decision, which is incompatible with Israel’s declared goal of peace, and call for both the tender process and the advancement of other settlements in East Jerusalem and elsewhere in the West Bank to be suspended immediately,” he added.
