AMMAN — Jordan, Arab and Islamic countries have condemned Israel’songoing settlement expansion in the occupied Palestinian territory and the continued settler violence against Palestinian people and their properties.

 

In a joint statement on Friday, the foreign ministers of Jordan, the UAE, Indonesia, Pakistan, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Egypt rejected the so-called “E1” settlement plan and other settler units construction in occupied East Jerusalem.

 

Israel last week opened tenders for the construction of 1,234 Israeli units in the occupied West Bank, with right rights groups saying the scheme will sever Palestinian territory in two.

 

The “E1” area on a stretch of Palestinian land will ultimately create a continuous Israeli settlement “corridor” between occupied East Jerusalem and the large settlement of Ma’ale Adumim, 7km east of Jerusalem.

 

In the statement, the ministers also condemned violations and acts of violence committed by settlers, with the support of Israeli occupation authorities, against the Palestinian people and their property.

 

The ministers stressed that such actions violate international law and relevant UN resolutions and pose a serious threat to regional and international peace and security.

 

They warned that the E1 settlement plan constitutes a “dangerous escalation that would further expand settlements and advance annexation,” while undermining the territorial contiguity of the occupied Palestinian territory, particularly between the West Bank and East Jerusalem.

 

They said that the plan threatens the viability of an independent and contiguous Palestinian state along the pre-1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital, and constitutes a direct challenge to international efforts to achieve peace.

 

The ministers also reiterated that the two-state solutionremains the only viable path towards a just, comprehensive and lasting peace.

 

They also called for an end to any support or financing that contributes to the establishment and expansion of illegal settlements, stressing that the lack of accountability allows violations to continue and further undermines prospects for a just and comprehensive peace.

 

The ministers called for immediate action to stop the E1 plan and end settlement activities and other measures aimed at altering the geographic and demographic character of the occupied Palestinian territory.