Islamabad: Pakistan and seven other Muslim nations on Tuesday condemned Israel’s recent move to approve land registration in the West Bank, saying the action aims to accelerate illegal settlement activity in Palestinian territory and undermines the two-state solution in the Middle East.
Members of the Israeli cabinet on Sunday voted in favor of beginning a land registration process in the West Bank for the first time since 1967. The move is being seen by many, including the Palestinian Authority (PA), as measures to tighten Israel’s control over the West Bank area by making it easier for Jewish settlers to buy land and ultimately annex the area. The Israeli media has reported that the process will take place only in Area C, which constitutes some 60 percent of the West Bank and is under Israeli security and administrative control.
“The foreign ministers of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, the United Arab Emirates, the State of Qatar, the Republic of Indonesia, the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, the Arab Republic of Egypt, and the Republic of Türkiye strongly condemn the decision issued by Israel to designate lands in the occupied West Bank as so called ‘state land’ and approve procedures for the registration and settlement of land ownership across extensive areas of the occupied West Bank for the first time since 1967,” the joint statement issued by Pakistan’s foreign ministry said.
