Arab League debates new US position on Israeli settlements, calls on Israel to halt settlement activity
By IAR Desk
Cairo: On Monday, November 25, 2019, the Council of the League of Arab States in an extraordinary session convened to debate the recent annoncment by US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo that Israeli settlements in Palestinian territories were not “illegal”, rejected this new US position.
The meeting was convened at the ministerial level to discuss the most recent announcement of the US administration regarding its position on the Israeli settlements in the West Bank, Palestinian territories. On November, 17 US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo had announced that the United States no longer considered that Israeli settlements in the West Bank were illegal. Under international law Israeli settlements are illegal.
Mr. Mohammed Ali Al-Hakim, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Iraq, who is also the President of the current session of the Arab League Council chaired the meeting. He explained that the American Declaration represents the legitimacy of the occupation and change of facts on the ground, as well as a clear bias towards Israel at the expense of the rights of the Palestinian people. He stressed the need to work to highlight the real suffering of the Palestinian people , the violation of their rights and how such development and positions negatively impact the Arab region, sowing the seeds of unrest. He called for informing and shaping public and international opinion to reject the US position. Al-Hakim concluded by stressing Iraq’s firm position on the Palestinian issue and its conviction that a stability in the region will not be achieved without reaching a comprehensive, just and lasting solution to the Palestinian issue.
Mr. Ahmed Aboul Gheit, Secretary General of the League of Arab States, said in his speech that the US declaration represents a very negative development that the current US administration does not seem to appreciate its long-term consequences, stressing that the American media does not represent any change to the illegal legal situation. The settlements remain legally void. The Secretary-General pointed to the negative impact of the American declaration on any chance to achieve peace in the future, as the declaration implied a recognition of the reality of the occupation by the US administration, which effectively robs the Palestinians of their right to negotiate on land that is no longer occupied. In this context, the Secretary-General also pointed out that the full alignment of the current US administration with the wishes of the Israeli extreme right in effect meanstthat after three years of holding such positions, the US administration succeeded in ending its role as an impartial mediator in any peace process. Finally, the Secretary-General welcomed the international stance against the US declaration, which was expressed by the member states at the last Security Council session, where 14 states stressed that the settlement constitutes a flagrant violation of international law, making the US declaration an individual opinion that enshrines the principle that might is right
Riyad al-Malki, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the State of Palestine, said that the recent US declaration added to nine previous resolutions issued by the US administration against the Palestinian people, in the context of what has become known as the ‘deal of the century’ aimed at liquidating the Palestinian issue and removing it from the priorities of the international community. He further noted that the US statement also comes as part of the administration’s attempts to rescue its far-right ally in Israel (the prime ministership of Benjamin Netanyahu who has been indicted on charges of corruption by Israel’s highest court) and to strengthen President Trump’s electoral position at the expense of the Palestinian people. The Palestinian minister stressed that the US position contradicts all previous decisions by previous administrations and was a deliberate disregard for the UN resolutions which reject the settlements and the decisions of the International Court against the Apartheid Wall and the Fourth Geneva Convention.
Al-Maliki pointed out that the American declaration is an imposition of American hegemony on the international system and an attempt to rearrange the international system based on the principle of force.Al-Maliki noted the seriousness of the US declaration, which lies in the destructive measures that can now be allowed against the Palestinian people, and gives Israel the green light to move forward in making good the threats previously issued by it. Following Secretary Pompeo’s announcement, Benjamin Netanyahu stressed that the road has been paved for implementing the decision to annex the Jordan Valley and parts of the West Bank to Israel and to implement further measures that were waiting for the right time. This raised an important question about the fate of the Palestinian presence in these areas. Al-Maliki praised the Arab political, diplomatic and legal efforts and the joint Arab coordination in international forums to support the adherence to international legitimacy. The US Congress itself has asked President Trump to back down from this announcement, he noted, which was a testimony to the failure of the US administration to convince the world of its positions.
Pompeo’s statement is in violation of the requirements of international law and international conventions, including the 1907 Hague Convention, Article 46 of which states that the Occupying Power may not confiscate private property. It violates the Fourth Geneva Convention of 1949, Article 49 of which states that The Occupying Power shall not have the right to transfer its citizens to the territory it has occupied or to take any action leading to demographic change therein. The UN Security Council’s resolutions included Resolution No. 2334 (2016) which affirmed that Israeli settlements established on Palestinian territory occupied since 1967, including East Jerusalem, are illegal under international law and constitute a major obstacle to the achievement of a two-state solution and a just, lasting and comprehensive peace, and called upon Israel – the occupying Power – to stop immediately and completely all settlement activity.
