Blinken believes that Israeli settlement expansion in the West Bank contradicts international law (Anatolia)
US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said that his country is disappointed by Israel's announcement of plans to build 3,000 housing units in settlements in the occupied West Bank, considering that they contradict international law.
Blinken added, during a press conference in Buenos Aires yesterday, Friday, during his visit to Argentina, commenting on the issue, “With regard to the settlements, we have seen these reports and I must say that we are disappointed by this announcement, and Israel’s expansion in building settlements is contrary to the law.” International".
The minister said, "It has been long-standing American policy under both Republican and Democratic administrations that new settlements are counterproductive to achieving lasting peace. They are also inconsistent with international law. Our administration maintains its firm opposition to settlement expansion. In our view, This only weakens Israel's security and does not strengthen it."
The administration of US President Joe Biden objects to the expansion of settlements, and says that it harms efforts for permanent peace, but Blinken's statement yesterday is the first occasion in which an American official says that it conflicts with international law.
The US administration recently imposed sanctions on 4 Israelis accused of involvement in violence launched by settlers.
In January 2020, the administration of former US President Donald Trump announced a peace plan for the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, which Israel adopted and which the Palestinians rejected for several reasons, including that it granted Israel most of what it sought during decades of conflict, including almost all of the occupied territories on which it established settlements. .
Most countries consider the settlements, which separate Palestinian communities from each other by many areas, a violation of international law.
The Palestinians and the international community say that transferring civilians from any country to occupied territories is illegal under the Fourth Geneva Convention of 1949 and UN Security Council resolutions.
Little progress has been made towards the establishment of a Palestinian state since the signing of the Oslo Accords in the early 1990s.
Among the obstacles to this is the expansion of Israeli settlements.
Source: Agencies