UAE, Arab and Islamic nations condemn Israeli move to annex West Bank

Abu Dhabi: The UAE, alongside Bahrain, Egypt, Indonesia, Jordan, Nigeria, Palestine, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, the League of Arab States, and the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), has strongly condemned the Israeli Knesset’s approval of a declaration seeking to impose so-called “Israeli sovereignty” over the occupied West Bank.

In a joint statement, the countries denounced the move as a blatant violation of international law and a direct breach of UN Security Council resolutions, which affirm the illegality of all measures aimed at legitimising occupation — including settlement activities in Palestinian territories occupied since 1967.

They reaffirmed that Israel has no legal sovereignty over the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, and stressed that such unilateral actions have no legal effect and cannot alter the status of these territories.

The statement warned that Israel’s actions further inflame regional tensions and urged the international community, including the UN Security Council, to uphold its legal and moral responsibilities by taking urgent steps to stop Israel’s illegal attempts to impose a fait accompli by force.

The countries reiterated their firm support for the two-state solution and the establishment of an independent, sovereign Palestinian state based on the June 4, 1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital.

Oman earlier condemned the Israeli Knesset’s approval of the draft bill. 

In a statement carried by the Oman News Agency, the Foreign Ministry affirmed that this move represents yet another defiance of international law, the resolutions of the international community, and a deliberate undermining of Middle East peace efforts, the Palestinian people’s right to self-determination, and the two-state solution.

The statement added, “Oman reiterates its vehement rejection of Israel’s continued enforcement of policies of blockade and starvation, as well as its obstruction of food, medicine, and humanitarian aid to the population in the Gaza Strip and the rest of the occupied Palestinian territories. It holds Israel and its supporters fully responsible for the legal, humanitarian, and political consequences of these practices, which violate the international humanitarian law.”