Echoing Qatar’s condemnation, other nations such as the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Poland and the United Kingdom have also issued damning statements against Israel.
Qatar’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) has, “in the strongest term,” issued a statement of condemnation against Israel for stealing land in Jordan Valley in the occupied Palestinian territories.
The ministry emphasised Qatar’s unwavering stance in the statement published on Wednesday, condemning any violations of Palestinian rights.
Not only does the occupier’s systematic expansionist policy flout Palestinians’ rights, but it is also, a “disrespect for international laws, especially international law and international humanitarian law,” the statement added.
The MoFA further said that illegal Israeli expansionism is to blame for the displacement of the Palestinian population.
Last year alone, Israeli coercion displaced at least 4,000 Palestinians in the occupied West Bank.
Qatar’s denunciation follows the wanton declaration by the aggressor’s Finance Minister, Bezalel Smotrich, that Israel has stolen 800 hectares (approximately 1,977 acres) of land in the occupied West Bank.
‘Peak’ in Israeli land seizures
Referring to the territory in Biblical parlance common to Israel, the ultra-far-right minister said, “While there are those in Israel and in the world who seek to undermine our right to Judea and Samaria and the country in general, we promote settlement through hard work and in a strategic manner all over the country.”
In a survey conducted by Peace Now, a group that tracks Israeli settlement activities, this latest illegal land grab by Israel marks “the largest since the Oslo Accords, and the year 2024 marks a peak in the extent of declarations of state land.”
The Peace Now watchdog also decried Smotrich, and genocidal leader – Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, as activating fighting “against the entire world and against the interests of the people of Israel for the benefit of a handful of settlers.”
Echoing Qatar’s abhorrence of Israeli expansionism, nations such as the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Poland and the United Kingdom have condemned the occupier’s latest transgression of international law.
In a statement issued by the British Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO), the UK slammed Israel’s latest violation saying: “2024 now marks an unacceptable peak in land seizures.”
The FCDO also called on the occupational government to immediately halt confiscating Palestinian land illegally.
“Our policy is clear: settlements are illegal under international law and only make it harder to progress to achieving peace and security,” the statement added.
