CAIRO, Wednesday, March 06, 2019 (WAFA) - Minister of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates Riyad Malki called today on Arab countries to take all practical measures to confront any country that recognizes Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.
He urged the Arab countries to implement the resolutions of the Arab League Council at various levels to take all measures necessary to confront any decision by any state that recognizes Jerusalem as the capital of Israel or move its embassy to the city.
Malki’s comments came during his speech at 151st session of the Arab League Council at the level of foreign ministers, which was held in Cairo.
The minister said the Palestinians are currently defending Al-Aqsa Mosque against Israeli attempts to control parts of the holy site, adding that the occupation authorities believe that the time and place are proper to divide the Mosque.
He added that “we need to respond to the Prime Minister of the Israeli occupation government, who claims every day that peace with Palestine is not a condition for peace with the Arabs as he seeks to change the image of Israel from an occupation force to an oasis of solutions and innovation.”
In 2002, the League of Arab States adopted the Arab Peace Initiative, which showed the desire of the Arabs for strategic peace, which states that the condition of recognizing Israel and establishing normal relations with it is conditioned on its withdrawal from the Palestinian territory occupied in 1967, the establishment of an independent Palestinian state and finding a fair solution to the issue of Palestinian refugees, the minister said.
“Thus, Arab states have expressed the maximum concession that they can offer for a just and comprehensive peace,” he said.
He added that “17 years after the Arab Peace Initiative, the number of Israeli settlers has doubled, campaigns to Judaize East Jerusalem and attempts to divide the Al-Aqsa Mosque have increased.
“Killing, arresting and robbing Palestinian lands and resources have doubled,’ he stressed.
Malki also called on the Brazilian president to maintain historic positions in support of Palestinian rights, urging him to adhere to international law and international resolutions and to refrain from any step undermining the legal status of Jerusalem.
The foreign minister reiterated his rejection of the Israeli and American efforts to undermine the refugee issue by stopping financial commitments to the budget of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) in order to damage its international mandate and ability to perform its functions in relief and employment of Palestinian refugees.
He also called on all countries to commit to supporting UNRWA‘s budget and renewing its mandate whenever necessary, until the issue of Palestinian refugees is resolved in accordance with international law and United Nations General Assembly Resolution 194 of 1948.
A.D./M.K.
