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Palestinian leaders' letter to UN chief condemns new Israeli settlements

Xinhua, March 23, 2016 Adjust font size:

The Palestinian UN envoy on Tuesday sent a letter to the UN secretary-general Ban Ki-moon, condemning new Israeli settlement activities.

The letters of the same content were also sent to the president of the UN Security Council and the president of the UN General Assembly.

The identical letters condemned the Israeli government's decision Monday to take over 1,200 dunums (1 dunum = 1,000 square meters) of Palestinian-owned land outside the villages of Sawiya, Lubban.

"It is long overdue for the international community, particularly the Security Council, to confront Israel's illegal settlement building," said the letter. "Israel carries on with this illegal project in flagrant defiance of world opinion and contempt for international law, including the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, which classifies settlement building as a war crime."

The latest settlement followed the Israeli announcement of March 15 declaring 579 acres, or 234 hectares, in Occupied West Bank as so-called "state lands," according to the letter.

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon maintained that continued Israeli settlements were an affront to the Palestinian people and the international community.

The Israeli settlement activities in the West Bank, which is seen by the United Nations as illegal under international law, stunt the Middle East peace process.

The Middle East peace process has been stalled since April 2014 due to deep differences over borders and settlement. By now, there have been no serious actions to resume the peace talks between Israelis and the Palestinians.

Recent months have witnessed a wave of violent tension between Israelis and Palestinians in the West Bank, east Jerusalem and the Gaza Strip. Endit