The European Union has condemned the Israeli regime’s plan to build 1,500 new illegal settler units in East al-Quds (Jerusalem), saying the settlements were illegal under international law.
“I would like to recall that, on 27 September, the Middle East Quartet called on all parties to refrain from actions that undermine trust or prejudge final status issues,” EU’s High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Catherine Ashton said in a statement on Thursday.
According to an Israeli Army Radio report early on Wednesday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Interior Minister Gideon Sa’ar have approved the expansion of the illegal settler units in a settlement known as Ramat Shlomo in East al-Quds (Jerusalem).
“The EU has repeatedly stated that settlements are illegal under international law. It has also called on Israel to end all settlement activity, including natural growth, and to dismantle outposts erected since March 2001,” Ashton noted, adding, “The EU deplores the recent settlement announcements.”
On Wednesday, the UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon “deplored” the Israeli regime’s plan, and the UN spokesman, Martin Nesirky, said “Settlement activity is contrary to international law and constitutes an obstacle to peace.”
The Israeli regime has been under fire from the international community, including its own allies, over its expansionist policies.
However, the Tel Aviv regime defies calls to abandon its illegal settlement activities.
Over half a million Israelis live in more than 120 settlements built since Israel’s occupation of the Palestinian territories of the West Bank and East al-Quds in 1967.
The United Nations and most countries regard the Israeli settlements as illegal because the territories were captured by Israel in a war in 1967 and are thus subject to the Geneva Conventions, which forbid construction on occupied lands.
