Arab, Muslim FMs condemn Israeli West Bank settlement plans

Arab, Muslim FMs condemn Israeli West Bank settlement plans The ministers called for “immediate action to halt the ‘E1’‌ settlement plan, rescind all measures taken in connection with it”. Saturday 22/08/2026 An Israeli flag flies over an Israeli settlement in the old city in Hebron in the Israeli-occupied West Bank. ANKARA The foreign ministers of Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Turkey, Egypt, Indonesia, Jordan and Pakistan condemned Israel’s settlement policies in Palestinian territories and said they categorically rejected the residential property project called ‘E1’ in the occupied West Bank. “The ministers call for immediate action to halt the ‘E1’‌ settlement plan, rescind all measures taken in connection with it, and cease all settlement activities and other measures aimed at altering the geographic and demographic character of the Occupied Palestinian Territory,” they said in a joint statement. The Israeli plan, they warned, constituted a “dangerous escalation” that “advances settlement expansion and annexation and undermines the geographical contiguity of the Occupied Palestinian Territory, particularly between the West Bank and East Jerusalem, thereby threatening the viability and realisation of an independent, contiguous Palestinian State based on the 1967 lines with East Jerusalem as its capital.” These expansionist actions “constitute a direct challenge to international efforts aimed at achieving peace, foremost among them President Donald Trump’s Comprehensive Plan, including its unequivocal rejection of annexation and forced displacement, and the mechanisms envisaged for its implementation, including through the Board of Peace, as well as President Trump’s firm commitment to not allow annexation of the West Bank, with a view to achieving stability and bringing the conflict to an end,” they said. EU condemnation European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on Friday joined European countries to condemn plans by Israel to open up construction tenders for a residential property project called ‘E1’ in the occupied West Bank. “The Israeli Government’s decision to publish construction tenders for the E1 settlement project is unacceptable,” she said in a post on X. “We have long opposed this step.” France, Germany, Britain and Italy issued on Tursday a joint statement condemning the Israeli project.
2026-08-22 09:05:26