EU slams Israel annexation plans in occupied West Bank

European Union (EU) considers Israel’s plans to annex parts of the occupied West Bank as “illegal,” the union’s Communication Officer in East Jerusalem, Shadi Othman, announced yesterday.

Responding to recent statements by the Israeli authorities on “imminent plans to annex parts of the West Bank,” Othman told Voice of Palestine that the EU would take action against the move.

“East Jerusalem, C classified land, and the West Bank are all classed as occupied territories, in line with the international law,” he stressed, pointing out that the EU would discuss the matter in the “upcoming meeting in Belgium’s Brussels.”

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On Monday, official sources told Reuters that France had urged EU countries to threaten Israel with “a tough response” if it goes ahead with the annexation plans. The sources added that Belgium, Ireland and Luxembourg were discussing the “possibility of imposing punitive economic measures.”

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu recently said that cabinet discussions would start in July over extending sovereignty over illegal Jewish settlements in the occupied West Bank and over the Jordan Valley, in line with the US Middle East “peace plan” – which was criticised by the United Nations, Palestinians, and a large number of international governments