Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammed Ashtiyeh announced the resignation of his government, which rules parts of the occupied West Bank, amid escalating violence in the occupied West Bank and the war in Gaza.
Ashtiyeh submitted his resignation to President Mahmoud Abbas on Monday, saying: “The decision to resign comes in light of the unprecedented escalation in the West Bank and Jerusalem, as well as war, genocide and hunger in the Gaza Strip.”
“I believe that the next phase and its challenges require new governmental and political arrangements that take into account the new realities in Gaza and the need for a Palestinian-Palestinian consensus based on Palestinian unity and the extension of unified authority to Palestinian lands,” he said.
international court of justice
Ashtiyeh’s comments come as the United States mounts pressure on Abbas to reorganize the Palestinian Authority and begin to create a political structure that can govern a Palestinian state after the war.
However, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has repeatedly rejected calls by the Palestinian Authority under Abbas to take control of the Palestinian state and govern Gaza.
Last week, Israeli lawmakers backed Netanyahu’s decision to reject any “unilateral” recognition of a Palestinian state.
Netanyahu said: “The Knesset overwhelmingly rejects attempts to forcibly establish a Palestinian state, which will not only fail to bring peace but will endanger the state of Israel.”
But the Palestinian foreign ministry slammed the vote and accused Israel of withholding Palestinian rights over its occupation of Palestinian territory.
“The Ministry of Foreign Affairs reiterates that Netanyahu’s permission is not required for the Palestinian state to become a full member of the United Nations and to be recognized by other countries,” it said in a statement.
Since the Oslo Accords were signed in the early 1990s, little progress has been made towards achieving a two-state solution.
Occupied West Bank
Israeli illegal settlements
Settlements were Jewish compounds built on Palestinian land. Between 600,000 and 750,000 Israeli settlers live in at least 290 settlements and outposts in the occupied West Bank and east Jerusalem. Israeli settlements are illegal under international law. (Al Jazeera)
As the International Court of Justice hears from some 50 countries on the legal implications of Israel’s occupation of the West Bank, far-right Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich announced plans on Thursday to build more than 3,300 new homes in response to the consequences of the The fatal shooting involved an Israeli civilian.
Smotrich said the decision would start the process of approving 300 new homes in the settlement of Kedar and 2,350 new homes in Maale Adumim, where the attack took place.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said he was “disappointed” by Israel’s announcement of new settlements.
“Long-standing U.S. policy under Republican and Democratic administrations has been that new settlements are counterproductive to achieving lasting peace,” he said in Buenos Aires.
“They are also inconsistent with international law. Our government is firmly opposed to settlement expansion, which we believe will only weaken, not strengthen, Israel’s security.”
Violence in the occupied West Bank escalated significantly after Hamas attacked southern Israel on October 7, killing 1,139 people. The Gaza Health Ministry stated that Israel’s retaliatory bombing of Gaza has killed more than 29,000 Palestinian civilians.
Palestinian health officials also said that during the same period, Israeli artillery fire in the occupied West Bank killed at least 401 people.
Israeli military targets Palestinian police providing aid
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2024-02-26 13:30:04
