Global Courant
RAMALLAH, Palestine
Palestinian Foreign Minister Riyad al-Maliki condemned the recent attacks by Jewish settlers on the occupied towns of the West Bank, calling it “organized terrorism by the State of Israel”.
Maliki also accused the Israeli army of protecting the settlers.
In an interview with Anadolu, al-Maliki said, “The army is protecting settlers accused of terror, terrorizing, killing and destroying on Palestinian land.”
He said the purpose of the attacks by the Jewish settlers was “to remove Palestinians from their land in order to spread the illegal settlement project”.
“The settlers’ attacks on the occupied parts of the West Bank are being carried out by the state of Israel.
“This is organized terrorism,” he said.
Disturbed by the approach of the international community, Maliki said “diplomats made statements, but it was not enough”.
“We expect countries that oppose the invasion to cut ties with Israel, impose sanctions and recognize all settlers as illegal terrorists,” he said.
Estimates suggest that around 700,000 Israeli settlers live in 164 settlements and 116 outposts in the occupied West Bank.
Under international law, all Jewish settlements in the occupied territories are considered illegal.
Call to the international community
Al-Maliki also urged the international community, in particular the International Criminal Court and authorities to play a role in preventing settler attacks.
“Palestine is working hard to report statements by Israeli government officials and settler attacks to the International Criminal Court to expedite the official investigation into Israel’s terrorist crimes,” he said.
He noted that some Israeli officials described the organized attacks by settlers in the West Bank as “nationalist terrorism”.
“The purpose of these statements may be to protect Israeli institutions in the eyes of international law and the international community, and to show the difference between terrorist acts by settlers and state institutions,” he said.
But the Palestinians know about the existence of terrorism not only from the settlers but also from the state,” he said.
religious war
Al-Maliki said the attacks carried out by the Israeli army kept the region in a constant state of conflict.
The continuation of the current situation will drag the region into a religious war,” he warned.
“The international community needs to act before the situation reaches a point of no return,” he said.
Palestine-Türkiye Relations
The Palestinian foreign minister emphasized that the relations between Turkey and Palestine are much more than friendship.
“The Turkish government and people attach great importance to what is happening in Palestine,” said al-Maliki.
Turkish leaders are among the first to react to Israel’s crimes,” he said.
He also said, “Turkey’s vision for Palestine is ahead of many countries.”
Al-Maliki emphasized that “Palestine is ready to coordinate with the Turkish authorities on all necessary measures to protect the rights of Palestinians.”
Abbas’ visit to China
Al-Maliki said that Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas did not make a special statement regarding the Uyghur Turks in China.
The claim that the President or any Palestinian official made any statement regarding the Uyghur Turks in China is absolutely not true.
This type of fabricated news is aimed at disrupting relations between Türkiye and Palestine,” he said.
“As the Palestinian Authority, we are not bound by every word and attitude adopted by any state,” he said.
The Palestinian official said that Abbas supports the “One China” policy in his speeches.
Abbas stated that China has the right to deal with Taiwan and Hong Kong issues. But human rights issues should not be politicized,” Maliki said.
He reiterated that Palestine’s position is in line with the resolutions of the Arab League, the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, the Non-Aligned Movement countries and the United Nations.
*Written by: Ikram Kouachi
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