Ramallah, November 12 (IANS). Palestinian officials have strongly condemned the comments made by Israel’s Finance Minister on the ‘occupied West Bank’. Bezalel Smotrich called for the imposition of Jewish state sovereignty on the ‘occupied West Bank’.
Palestinian presidency spokesman Nabil Abu Rudaineh said on Monday that Smotrich’s comments confirm that the Israeli government intends to finalize its plan to take control of the West Bank by 2025. His statement shows that the Jewish state is not satisfied with its ‘crimes’ in Gaza, the West Bank and Jerusalem.
Rudaineh said the Palestinian Presidency holds the Israeli administration fully responsible for the consequences of these ‘dangerous policies’ that are pushing the region towards ‘explosion’.
The Palestinian Foreign Ministry and Diaspora Ministry in a statement described the Israeli Finance Minister’s comments as a direct result of international failure, Xinhua news agency reported.
The statement said those calling for a halt to the killings encourage Israel to continue its “crimes and violations.”
According to Israeli media, Smotrich said on Monday that the election of Donald Trump as the next US president has created an opportunity to expand Israel’s sovereignty over the West Bank.
The West Bank is one of the two Palestinian territories (the other being the Gaza Strip). This area is under Israeli occupation. The Israeli occupation of the Palestinian territories, which has continued since 1967 and is considered the longest military occupation in modern history, is considered illegal under international law.
–IANS
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