AK Party urges UN to take action against Israeli settlements

THE RULING Justice and Development Party (AK Party) on Monday called on the United Nations to take action against Israel’s ongoing illegal settlement activities in Palestinian territories and urged the world body to take legal measures to prevent recent acts.

The party’s spokesperson, Ömer Çelik, condemned Israel’s approval of new plans to construct over 3,500 additional illegal settlement units in occupied East Jerusalem, after an AK Party Central Executive Board meeting chaired by President and AK Party Chair Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. The closed-door meeting at party headquarters lasted three-and-a-half hours.

Underlining that Israel’s recent “radical” steps undermine the two-state perspective, Çelik said they also prevent the emergence of a self-contained Palestinian state.

His statements came after the approval of five settlement plans containing 3,557 new settlement units in occupied East Jerusalem by a local Israeli planning committee last week. Israel has in recent years intensified its settlement activities in East Jerusalem.

The West Bank, including East Jerusalem, is regarded as occupied territory under international law, making all Jewish settlements there illegal.

There are more than 250 illegal Israeli settlements in the West Bank, which Israel occupied in 1967. More than 500,000 settlers make life more difficult for Palestinians living under the occupation.

The settlements Israel approved recently in occupied East Jerusalem are against international law, the Turkish Foreign Ministry also said on Thursday.

Known for its unbreakable solidarity with the Palestinians, Turkey has been voicing support for the Palestinian cause in the international realm for decades.