An Israeli settler stands with an Israeli flag before a man holding up a Palestinian flag during a demonstration attended by Palestinians, Israelis, and other foreign activists in the east Jerusalem neighbourhood of Sheikh Jarrah on Feb 25, 2022, denouncing the evacuation of Palestinian families from their homes and settlement activity in the Palestinian Territories and east Jerusalem. Israel captured east Jerusalem in the Six-Day War of 1967 and later annexed it, in a move not recognized by the international community. More than 200,000 Jewish settlers have since moved into the city's eastern sector, fuelling tensions with Palestinians, who claim it as the capital of their future state. (AHMAD GHARABLI / AFP)
RAMALLAH – A senior European Union official on Sunday said the Israeli policy of settlement in Palestinian territories is rejected and undermines the world-backed two-state solution to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict.
On Friday, the Israeli District Planning and Building Committee approved a plan to build 730 new housing units in Pisgat Ze'ev, a Jewish settlement in East Jerusalem
The settlement policy is "fundamentally contrary to international law" and "undermines the chances of the two-state solution on the 1967 borders," Shadi Othman, an EU communication official in Jerusalem, told reporters.
On Friday, the Israeli District Planning and Building Committee approved a plan to build 730 new housing units in Pisgat Ze'ev, a Jewish settlement in East Jerusalem.
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Othman called on Israel, the international community, and all relevant parties "to work towards preserving the two-state solution and the possibility of implementing it in the future."
The last direct peace talks between Palestine and Israel, which were sponsored by the United States and lasted for nine months, stopped in 2014 due to deep differences over issues related to Jewish settlements, borders and security.
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The Palestinians want to declare East Jerusalem as the capital of their future state, while Israel insists on having a unified Jerusalem as its eternal capital.