Jordan condemns Israeli minister’s call for West Bank sovereignty

AMMAN, Nov. 11 (Xinhua) — Jordan’s Foreign Ministry on Monday denounced recent remarks by Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich as “extremist, inciting, and racist,” following his call for the imposition of Israeli sovereignty over the occupied West Bank.
In a statement, the ministry condemned Smotrich’s advocacy for expanding settlement construction, which it described as a direct violation of international law and an infringement on Palestinian rights to an independent state within the 1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital.
Ministry spokesperson Sufian Qudah reiterated in the statement Jordan’s categorical rejection of such rhetoric, emphasizing that Israel has no sovereignty over Palestinian territories under occupation.
He underscored that these statements, alongside Israeli settlement activities, represent a clear breach of international law and United Nations Security Council Resolution 2334, which condemns measures aimed at altering the demographic and geographic character of occupied Palestinian territories, including East Jerusalem.
Resolution 2334, along with the advisory opinion of the International Court of Justice, maintains that all Israeli settlements in occupied Palestinian territories are illegal. The ministry added that these opinions affirm the illegality of Israel’s occupation and settlement policies, as well as any annexation efforts.
Qudah called on the international community to fulfill its legal and moral obligations by pressuring Israel to cease military actions in the Gaza Strip and Lebanon, de-escalate violence in the West Bank, and provide necessary protections to Palestinians. ■