Ban Ki-moon concerned about Israeli aggression on Al-Aqsa

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon expressed on Friday night his “deep concern” over the “provocations” on holy sites in Jerusalem, Al-Arab Al-Yawm said.

Speaking to reporters in New York, Ki-Moon said: “Again, I express my deep concern over the provocations on the holy sites in Jerusalem, which only cause tension at a time both sides [Palestinians and Israeli] need to take their way towards the negotiating table.”

He also warned of the current stagnation of the peace process in the Middle East, calling what happened in the Gaza Strip one of the results of this stagnation.

Israel carried out a 51-day war that claimed the lives of around 2,200 Palestinians and wounded around 11,000 others. The war caused a huge destruction on infrastructure and residential, medical and commercial buildings.

Ki-Moon stressed that he got two messages from the region: “Do not spare efforts to reconstruct Gaza, and do not waste time re-launching the peace talks.”

He stressed that the two-state solution is the only way to leave the vicious circle of war, adding that the international community must apply pressure for the sake of peace. He hailed the efforts of the US Secretary of State John Kerry in this regard.

The UN head visited the Gaza Strip, the West Bank and Jerusalem early last week. He met with Palestinian and Israeli officials and slammed Israeli bids for building new settlements.