Egypt has issued a strongly worded official statement condemning the Israeli government’s decision to resume land registration and settlement procedures in the occupied West Bank for the first time since 1967.
Cairo described the move as a “dangerous escalation” aimed at entrenching Israeli control over occupied Palestinian territory and undermining the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people. The statement said the decision represents a clear breach of international law and international humanitarian law, particularly the Fourth Geneva Convention of 1949 and relevant United Nations Security Council resolutions, most notably Resolution 2334 of 2016.
The statement added that the Israeli measure contradicts the advisory opinion issued by the International Court of Justice on 19th July 2024, which affirmed the illegality of actions intended to alter the legal, historical and demographic status of the occupied Palestinian territories. It also stressed the obligation to end the Israeli occupation and the principle that territory cannot be acquired by force.
Egypt described the step as an attempt to impose a new legal and administrative reality designed to consolidate control over occupied land. It warned that such actions undermine the two-state solution, weaken prospects for a viable and independent Palestinian state, and threaten the chances of achieving a just and comprehensive peace in the region.
The statement reaffirmed Egypt’s full rejection of all unilateral measures aimed at changing the legal, demographic and historical status of the occupied Palestinian territories. It cautioned that these policies represent a serious escalation that could increase tension and instability in the Palestinian territories and across the wider region.
Egypt also called on the international community to assume its responsibilities and take clear steps to halt these violations, ensure respect for international law, and protect the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people, foremost their right to self-determination and to establish an independent state along the 4 June 1967 lines, with East Jerusalem as its capital.
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