Jordan urges unified stance to end Israeli attacks on Palestinians

AMMAN — Having a unified stance on the Palestine-Israel conflict is a top priority to galvanise the Arab and Muslim nation's resources to bring an immediate end to Israeli attacks on the Palestinian people, Foreign Minister Nasser Judeh said Tuesday. 

Speaking at an extraordinary meeting of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation’s (OIC) foreign ministers in Jeddah, Judeh noted that the Kingdom is working with permanent UN Security Council members and the Palestinian mission at the UN to highlight the Jordanian and Arab stance on the latest Israeli attacks, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

The foreign minister also highlighted Jordan’s efforts as a non-permanent member of the Security Council to adopt a resolution that calls for an immediate ceasefire and the withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza, in addition to reaching a sustainable solution to the problem and lifting the siege on the strip.

Judeh reiterated Jordan’s support for all efforts aimed at reaching a permanent ceasefire which abides by the Egyptian initiative, including the efforts of UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and US Secretary of State John Kerry to end the suffering of the Palestinian people and stop the targeting of innocent civilians, according to Petra.

He also noted that under His Majesty King Abdullah’s directives, relevant Jordanian institutions have presented all possible humanitarian support and relief aid to mitigate the suffering of Gazans.

Judeh commented on the concurrent attacks on the West Bank, noting a “dangerous Israeli escalation, synchronised with the unilateral Israeli actions targeting occupied Jerusalem and its Islamic and Christian holy sites, especially Al Aqsa Mosque”.

The foreign minister reiterated the importance of the two-state solution, calling it the only resolution that guarantees an end to Israeli attacks on the Palestinians.

The resumption of negotiations will achieve peace and lead to the establishment of a Palestinian state on its national soil with East Jerusalem as its capital, Judeh noted.

Also speaking at the OIC meeting, Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Saud Al Faisal said “Israel has to realise that peace is the only solution for its survival”, Reuters reported from Jeddah.

“Its [Israel’s] only objective is to uproot the Palestinian existence wherever it is,” Prince Saud told the meeting in Jeddah. 

Palestinian Prime Minister Rami Hamdallah and ministers from the 56-member OIC also attended the meeting, according to Reuters.

Hamdallah said one of Israel’s objectives in its last aggression is to undermine the Palestinian unity government and detach Gaza from its Palestinian whole, pointing out that the Palestinian people, despite the death, pain and suffering, will stay united, according to an OIC statement.

In the statement, released after the meeting, the OIC called for convening a donors’ conference to rebuild what the Israeli aggression destroyed, expressing deep concern over the continued brutal military aggression carried out by the Israeli occupation army.

The OIC members expressed disappointment at the failure of the UN Security Council to “assume its responsibilities for the maintenance of international peace and security” and take the necessary measures to stop the Israeli aggression, the statement said.