UAE, 7 other nations condemn Israeli ministers' statements

The Foreign Ministers of the UAE, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Jordan, Indonesia, Pakistan, Türkiye, and Egypt strongly condemn the statements made by Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir and Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz regarding the displacement of the Palestinian people from the Gaza Strip, including proposals for plans and mechanisms aimed at forcibly removing Palestinians from their land. 

Such inflammatory statements and proposals flagrantly violate principles of international law, including international humanitarian law, and pose a direct threat to the legitimate and inalienable rights of the Palestinian people. 

The Ministers reaffirm their unequivocal rejection and condemnation of any attempts or plans aimed at displacing the Palestinian people, whether within or outside the Occupied Palestinian Territory, under any pretext or justification. 

A young boy looks on as Civil Defence personnel dig through the rubble of Al-Muhandisin Tower, that was destroyed in israeli strikes in the early days of the war, as they look for human remains in the Nuseirat camp for refugees in the central Gaza Strip on Saturday. AFP

They warn against the grave consequences of turning calls for forced displacement into declared policy or concrete measures aimed at uprooting Palestinians from their land. Such actions constitute a direct challenge to international efforts aimed at achieving peace, foremost among them President Donald Trump’s Comprehensive Plan to End the Gaza Conflict, including its unequivocal rejection of forced displacement, and gravely risk undermining prospects for stability in the region. 

The Ministers stress that the Gaza Strip is an integral part of the Occupied Palestinian Territory and underscore the imperative of preserving the unity of the Palestinian territory in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem. They reaffirm that the only path toward achieving a just and lasting peace lies in the implementation of the two-State solution with the establishment of an independent Palestinian State along the lines of 4 June 1967, with East Jerusalem as its capital, in accordance with the relevant resolutions of international legitimacy. 

The Ministers also call upon the international community, particularly the United Nations Security Council, to shoulder its responsibilities and firmly confront any attempts to impose a new demographic or geographic reality in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, and to ensure respect for the rules of international law. 

They reaffirm their continued full support for the steadfastness of the Palestinian people on their land and their rejection of all attempts aimed at erasing the Palestinian cause or undermining the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people. 

WAM