Shweta Desai
12 January 2021•Update: 12 January 2021
PARIS
France on Tuesday condemned Israel’s move to build more houses in illegal settlements in Palestine’s occupied West Bank.
“France calls on the Israeli authorities not to implement these decisions,” the Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
“It calls on the parties to avoid any unilateral measures that could undermine the two-state solution based on international law and the agreed parameters.”
Israeli premier Benjamin Netanyahu said on Monday that 800 more apartments will be built for illegal settlers in the occupied West Bank.
“We are here to stay. We continue to build the Land of Israel,” he said on Twitter.
France has repeatedly denounced Israel’s controversial expansionist activities impacting the future of Palestine.
A joint statement after Monday’s Cairo Ministerial Meeting on the Middle East Peace Process also took note of Israel’s unilateral measures and stressed the need for adherence to international humanitarian law in Palestinian territories occupied since 1967, including East Jerusalem.
The foreign ministers of France, Germany, Egypt, and Jordan urged Israel to “immediately and completely cease all settlement activities including in East Jerusalem.”
“They also concurred that the building and expansion of settlements, and confiscation of Palestinian structures and properties are a violation of international law that undermine the viability of the two-state solution,” read the statement.
