Jordan rejects Israeli sovereignty claims over West Bank, calls for protection of Palestinian rights

AMMAN — Jordan on Monday condemned the provocative statements made by Israeli minister Bezalel Smotrich, who recently called for Israeli sovereignty over the occupied West Bank and the expansion of settlements.

A Foreign Ministry statement described these remarks as a "flagrant violation of international law and a direct affront to the Palestinian people’s inalienable right to establish an independent, sovereign state along the pre-1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital."

Ministry spokesperson Sufian Qudah reiterated Jordan's firm rejection and condemnation of such incitement, stressing that Israel holds no sovereignty over the occupied Palestinian territories. 

The official also stressed that these illegal statements and actions violate international law and relevant UN Security Council resolutions, particularly Resolution 2334, which condemns all "illegal" Israeli efforts to alter the demographic, character, and status of the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem. 

Qudah further highlighted the advisory opinion of the International Court of Justice, which declared the Israeli occupation, settlements, and annexation of Palestinian land as illegal.

The spokesperson also called on the international community to uphold its legal and moral responsibilities, urging it to exert pressure on Israel and its "extremist" government to cease its aggression in Gaza and Lebanon, stop its dangerous escalation in the occupied West Bank, and ensure the protection of the Palestinian people. Qudah also reiterated the need to support the Palestinian people’s legitimate right to establish an independent and sovereign state on the 1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital.