AMMAN: King Abdullah II of Jordan on Sunday reaffirmed his “absolute refusal” toward any efforts by Israel to annex the occupied West Bank during a visit to the UAE, the royal palace said.
The message came after several Israeli officials suggested that the country could proceed with the annexation of large tracts of the territory in response to moves by Western governments to recognize Palestinian statehood this month.
According to a palace statement, King Abdullah reiterated “Jordan’s absolute refusal of any Israeli measures aimed at annexing the West Bank and forcing Palestinians to leave.”
He also rejected any plans to displace Palestinians from Gaza or to separate the two Palestinian territories.
He was joined by UAE President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al-Nahyan in expressing opposition to Israeli plans to expand settlements in the West Bank, occupied by Israel since 1967.
They also rejected “Israeli plans aimed at perpetuating the occupation of Gaza and expanding military control.”
The UAE warned this week that annexation would be a “red line.”
The issue was a key point during the US-led negotiations for Abu Dhabi to normalize relations with Israel in the Abraham Accords of 2020.
The Jordanian king has on multiple occasions said that Jordan would never be a “substitute country” for Palestinians, amid suggestions from the US and Israel that third countries could take in displaced Gazans.
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar on Sunday warned that Western nations recognizing a Palestinian state could trigger “unilateral” measures by Israel.
Far-right finance minister Bezalel Smotrich called this week for the West Bank’s annexation in response.
Jordanian king rejects any Israeli move to annex West Bank
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Jordanian king rejects any Israeli move to annex West Bank
- King Abdullah rejected any plans to displace Palestinians from Gaza
- UAE warned this week that an Israeli annexation of Palestinian territories would be a “red line”
Israeli settlers install mobile homes on Palestinian lands near Ramallah
- Israeli forces have carried out 1,523 violations this year, while settlers committed 621 attacks against Palestinians, a settlement watchdog said
- Some of the Israeli settlements in the West Bank since 1967 started as mobile homes that later expanded into permanent structures
LONDON: Israeli settlers set up mobile homes east of the Ramallah and Al-Bireh district in the occupied West Bank on Sunday, potentially marking the initiation of a new illegal outpost in the area.
Residents told the Wafa news agency that the makeshift settler units were installed between the towns of Burqa and Deir Dibwan to expand the Ramat Migron settlement, which is built on Palestinian-owned land.
Some of the Israeli settlements in the West Bank since 1967 started as mobile homes that later expanded into permanent structures. Many outposts begin without official approval but were later legalized by Israeli authorities, the Wafa added.
Israeli forces have carried out 1,523 violations this year, while settlers committed 621 attacks against Palestinians, according to the Wall and Settlement Resistance Commission. The most incidents occurred in Ramallah and Al-Bireh (360), followed by Hebron (348), Bethlehem (342), and Nablus (334).
All settlements in the West Bank are illegal under international law.
Excluding East Jerusalem, which was occupied and annexed by Israel in 1967, some 500,000 Israeli settlers live in the West Bank, along with about 3 million Palestinian residents.
