NEW YORK, February 17, 2026 (WAFA) – UN Secretary-General António Guterres condemned the Israeli government's decision to designate land in the occupied West Bank as "state land."

This came in a statement by the Secretary-General's spokesperson, Stéphane Dujarric, during the daily press briefing on Monday evening.

Dujarric said, "I can say that the Secretary-General condemns the Israeli government's decision on February 15 to restart land registration procedures in Area C of the occupied West Bank."

Dujarric warned that restarting land registration operations in Area C could lead to the dispossession of Palestinians from their property and carries the risk of expanding Israeli control over land in the area.

The UN official considered the decision and Israel's continued presence in the occupied Palestinian territories illegal and destabilizing, calling on the Israeli government to rescind it.

Dujarric also relayed Guterres' warning that "the current trajectory on the ground" is undermining hopes for a two-state solution, stressing that all Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem and its associated regime, "have no legal legitimacy."

K.T