New york: Palestine's Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Minister Riyad Mansour, has urgently addressed the UN Secretary-General, the President of the Security Council, and the President of the General Assembly through three identical letters. Mansour highlighted Israel's persistent activities focused on solidifying the annexation of Palestinian land, despite ongoing international disapproval.
According to Palestine news and Information Agency, Mansour emphasized Israel's illegal construction plans in the E1 area, intended to divide the northern and southern West Bank and isolate occupied East Jerusalem from its Palestinian surroundings. This, he stated, violates international law and undermines the unity of the occupied Palestinian Territory, threatening the viability of a two-state solution.
He detailed the Israeli government's previous approval of plans to build 3,401 colonial units in E1 and the issuance of tenders for their implementation. Additionally, Mansour mentioned a new segregation road that would restrict Palestinian access to their homes and lands.
Mansour also addressed the forced displacement of Palestinian communities, citing directives from Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich to displace the village of Khan al-Ahmar. He criticized an electronic system by Israel for 'land registration and rights settlement,' which alters land ownership and facilitates the appropriation of Palestinian land by settlers.
The letters further highlighted Israeli actions concerning archaeological and religious sites, particularly the seizure of lands around the village of Nabi Samwil, marking the first appropriation of a religious site in the West Bank. Mansour condemned plans to build a military complex over the UNRWA headquarters in East Jerusalem, following its illegal demolition.
He asserted that these initiatives are central to Israel's annexation strategy and its control over the occupied Palestinian territory. Mansour also pointed to violence by settlers in the West Bank, supported by the Israeli government, as part of the annexation efforts to unlawfully depopulate and seize Palestinian lands.
Mansour's letters included a focus on the Gaza Strip, where two million Palestinians face displacement amid Israeli bombardment. He noted the Israeli Prime Minister's orders to extend control over 70 percent of the Strip, violating the UN Charter, ceasefire agreements, and Security Council resolutions.
Additionally, Mansour highlighted the use of rape and sexual violence as tactics in the conflict, pointing to the inclusion of Israeli forces on a UN list of parties responsible for such violence.
He called on the international community to urgently halt Israeli annexation activities in the Palestinian territories and to adopt effective accountability measures in line with international law to ensure Israel's compliance with its legal obligations.