ISLAMABAD: The foreign ministers of eight Muslim-majority countries have issued a joint statement strongly condemning Israel’s decision to designate lands in the occupied West Bank as so-called “state land” and to approve procedures for the registration and settlement of land ownership across extensive areas of the territory for the first time since 1967.
The joint statement was issued by the foreign ministers of the Pakistan, Egypt, Jordan, United Arab Emirates, Indonesia, Türkiye, Saudi Arabia and Qatar on Tuesday.
In the statement, the ministers described Israel’s decision as an illegal step and a “grave escalation” aimed at accelerating settlement activity, facilitating land confiscation, entrenching Israeli control and applying what they termed unlawful Israeli sovereignty over the Occupied Palestinian Territory.
They said the move undermines the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people and represents a serious violation of international law and international humanitarian law, particularly the Fourth Geneva Convention.
The ministers also pointed to what they described as violations of relevant United Nations Security Council resolutions, foremost among them Resolution 2334, which calls on Israel to cease settlement activities in the occupied territories.
The statement further stressed that the Israeli decision contradicts the advisory opinion issued by the International Court of Justice regarding the legal consequences arising from Israeli policies and practices in the Occupied Palestinian Territory.
According to the ministers, the court underscored the illegality of measures intended to alter the legal, historical and demographic status of the territory, as well as the obligation to end the occupation and the prohibition on the acquisition of territory by force.
Describing the step as an attempt to impose a new legal and administrative reality on the ground, the ministers said it is designed to consolidate Israeli control over occupied land.
They warned that such measures undermine the two-State solution and erode prospects for establishing an independent and viable Palestinian state.
The foreign ministers reiterated their categorical rejection of all unilateral actions aimed at altering the legal, demographic and historical status of the Occupied Palestinian Territory.
They cautioned that such policies constitute a dangerous escalation that could further heighten tensions and instability in the territory and the wider region.
Calling on the international community to assume its responsibilities, the ministers urged clear and decisive steps to halt what they termed ongoing violations and to ensure respect for international law.
They also emphasized safeguarding what they described as the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people, foremost among them the right to self-determination, an end to the occupation, and the establishment of an independent and sovereign Palestinian state on the lines of 4 June 1967, with East Jerusalem as its capital.
The joint statement underscores growing diplomatic concern among key regional and Muslim-majority countries over developments in the West Bank and signals continued support for a negotiated settlement based on international law and established UN resolutions.
