EU slams Israel’s move to legalise five outposts in West Bank

Kuala Lumpur: The European Union (EU) has condemned in the strongest terms the announcement by Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich that five outposts are to be legalised in the occupied Palestinian territory.

In a statement, EU spokesperson Peter Stano said this is another deliberate attempt at undermining peace efforts.

At this week’s European Council, Stano said EU leaders condemned the Israeli government’s decisions to further expand illegal settlements across the occupied West Bank and urged Israel to reverse these decisions.

In line with its longstanding common position and UN Security Council Resolutions, the EU will not recognise changes to the 1967 borders unless agreed by the parties involved, he added.

“The EU reiterated that actions weakening the Palestinian Authority must stop and calls on Israel to release withheld clearance revenues and to take the necessary measures to ensure that correspondent banking services between Israeli and Palestinian banks remain in place,” he said.

Stano said the EU reaffirmed its unwavering commitment to lasting and sustainable peace in accordance with the relevant resolutions of the UN Security Council resolutions, as the basis of the two-State solution in resolving the conflict.

On Thursday, the Israeli cabinet approved steps that were proposed by Smotrich at “legalising” settlement outposts in the West Bank.

Outposts are small communities established by illegal Israeli settlers on privately owned Palestinian land.