On Tuesday, 85 countries at the United Nations issued a joint statement expressing their condemnation of the new Israeli measures, which they described as aiming to expand the scope of its illegal presence in the West Bank, expressing concern that the annexation of Palestinian territories may lead to changes in the demographic composition.
This statement came a week after Israel approved measures to “facilitate the purchase of land by settlers,” and two days before a government decision to “accelerate the process of land registration in the West Bank, which Israel has controlled since 1967.”
The signatory countries of the statement, which include France, China and Russia, in addition to international organizations such as the European Union and the League of Arab States, condemned what they described as “unilateral Israeli decisions and actions aimed at expanding the illegal Israeli presence in the West Bank.”
The statement, issued in New York, stressed that these decisions “contrary to Israel’s obligations under international law and must be withdrawn immediately,” stressing “strong opposition to any form of annexation.”
The countries also stressed their rejection of “all measures aimed at changing the demographic composition, character and legal status of the Palestinian territories occupied since 1967, including East Jerusalem,” warning that these policies “represent a violation of international law, undermine ongoing efforts to achieve peace and stability in the region, and threaten the chances of reaching a peace agreement that ends the conflict.”
On Monday, United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres called on Israel to “immediately retract” its new measures, considering that they “not only destabilize, but are also, as the International Court of Justice has confirmed, illegal.”
Settlement activities have been continuing in the West Bank since 1967, but their pace has increased significantly under the current government of Benjamin Netanyahu, especially since the outbreak of the Gaza War on October 7, 2023.
According to United Nations data, more than 500,000 Israelis live in settlements in the West Bank, in addition to about 3 million Palestinians, in settlements that the United Nations considers “illegal under international law.”
