EU, UN officials among hundreds attending Jericho anti-annexation rally
Hundreds of Palestinians attended a rally in Jericho on Monday to protest Israel’s intention to extend its sovereignty to parts of the West Bank.
The rally marked the beginning of a series of protests planned by the ruling Fatah faction in the coming days to voice their opposition to Israel’s annexation plan.
This was the first major protest in the West Bank after weeks of apathy among the Palestinian public toward the Israeli plan. On Sunday, Fatah called on Palestinians to converge on Jericho to take part in the anti-annexation protest.
UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process Nickolay Mladenov, head of the EU Representative Office to the West Bank and Gaza Strip, Sven Kuehn von Burgsdorff, and diplomats from several countries, including Britain, China, Russia, Japan and Jordan, also attended the rally. PA, PLO and Fatah officials also attended.
Addressing the rally, Mladenov and Burgsdorff said the planned annexation of parts of the West Bank was in violation of international law.
Burgsdorff said the EU does not recognize Israeli sovereignty on any part of the pre-1967 lines, including the West Bank and east Jerusalem. He warned that the annexation, if implemented, would undermine the chances of reaching a two-state solution.
The head of the Russian Representative Office in Ramallah, Gucha Poachidze, also addressed the rally and warned that the Israeli plan would undermine the peace process and prevent the establishment of an independent Palestinian state. Poachidze called for the immediate resumption of peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians in order to reach a comprehensive agreement on the basis of UN resolutions and the Arab Peace Initiative of 2002.
Palestinians claimed that the IDF prevented hundreds of Palestinians from other parts of the West Bank from entering Jericho to participate in the rally, which was held under the banner “The Peaceful National Rally to Confront Annexation.”