PA calls for UNSC, ICC to bear their responsibility towards settlements

Palestinian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates yesterday called on the UN Security Council and the International Criminal Court (ICC) to bear their responsibility towards Israeli settlement.

In a statement posted on Twitter, the ministry strongly condemned Israeli plans to illegally build 350 new settler units in Beit El settlement, near the occupied West Bank city of Ramallah.

The ministry said that the Israeli announcement of the plan made in the presence of settlers and ministers points to the “full partnership between settlers and government” in relation to deepening and expanding settlements.

Meanwhile, the Palestinian ministry blamed the Israeli government for the “settlement crimes, home demolition and enforced expulsion”, which it said was a “war crime and a crime against humanity that deserve punishment by international law.”

The ministry added: “All forms of settlement are illegal according to international laws and conventions, as well as the international community… It is one of the issues which the state of Palestine has passed on to the ICC.”

At the same time, the ministry said it continues its political, diplomatic and legal action to widen the international front against settlement that would force the occupation state to stop its activities.

There are currently more than 800,000 Israeli Jewish settlers living in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem amongst an estimated 3.1 million Palestinians, who are harassed by occupation forces and settlers.

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