Dr. Anwar bin Mohammed Gargash, Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, participated on Thursday in the emergency Arab League session of foreign ministers held to discuss Israel’s plans to use parts of the Occupied Palestinian Territories annexed in 1967, a move that is seen by the UAE as ”a dangerous development that impedes the peace process and undermines international efforts to resolve the Arab-Israeli conflict.”
In a statement issued after the meeting, which was held through video conference at the invitation of the State of Palestine, Arab countries condemned Israel’s plans to annex parts of the West Bank in contravention of international consensus.
The UAE expressed that the attempt by the Israeli Government to impose sovereignty on parts of the occupied West Bank is “unacceptable and violates international law and resolutions and impedes the peace process.”
The UAE emphasised that “these steps would prejudice the historical and entrenched rights of the Palestinian people as stipulated in UN Security Council Resolution 478 of 1980.”
The UAE also warned of “dangerous repercussions” in undermining opportunities for peace and fueling conflict, extremism, and terrorism in the region.
The UAE reiterated its unwavering stance in support of efforts to reach a “permanent, just, and comprehensive solution to the Palestinian issue based on a two-state solution and the establishment of an independent Palestinian state according to the 1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital, in accordance with international resolutions, the Arab Peace Initiative, and the principles of the Madrid Peace Conference.”
The UAE indicated that it is imperative for the international community to fulfil its responsibility in calling for an end to all settlement activity in the Occupied Palestinian Territories and reject Israeli actions that violate the relevant international resolutions.
The UAE also urged the Arab League to continue upholding its pivotal role in the Palestinian cause and move towards nullifying any future measures that affect the progress of the peace process.
Victory for Palestine
Meanwhile, another report from Geneva said Palestine welcomed the position of the chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC), Fatou Bensouda, to probe possible “war crimes” in the country, which falls within its jurisdiction.
Foreign Minister Riad al-Maliki said in a statement on Thursday that this position means that the court has territorial jurisdiction in Palestine.
Palestine joined the ICC in January 2015. Under the Rome Statute, Palestine should enjoy sovereignty over its territories including East Jerusalem along the 1967 borders.
“Palestine and its people have faith in the international judiciary and its justice, it believes that the era of evading punishment has begun to fade away,” said al-Maliki.
He urged the judges of the pre-trial chamber “to issue its position as soon as possible, in harmony with the principles of international justice, ending the impunity or those whose crimes fall within the jurisdiction of the ICC, including war crimes and crimes against humanity”.
The top Palestinian diplomat said that Bensouda’s report was “a legal argument that asserts Palestine’s right to justice and to resort to the international judiciary, as well as confirming the transparency and integrity of the court”.
Bensouda’s report said that Palestine is a state, urging the pre-trial chamber I to confirm that the “territory” over which the court may exercise its jurisdiction comprises the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and Gaza Strip.
The report came after Bensouda announced that the preliminary examination into the situation in Palestine “has concluded with the determination that all the statutory criteria under the Rome Statute for the opening of an investigation have been met” .
She had also requested the court investigate the parameters of its jurisdiction over the occupied territory, amidst highly politicized legal controversy.
