Prime Minister Netanyahu’s rejection of a Palestinian state provokes reactions.
The United Nations and the United Kingdom say a two-state solution is essential to bring peace to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, as international resistance to Israel’s rejection of a Palestinian state grows.
Britain’s foreign secretary said on Wednesday, as he left for a tour of the Middle East, that he would underline Britain’s long-term support for a two-state solution. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres insisted on Tuesday that refusing a Palestinian state would prolong the war in the Gaza Strip.
The statements reflect global concern after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said last week that he opposed an independent Palestinian state and that his country needed full security control over the Palestinian territories. .
Speaking at a UN Security Council meeting, Guterres called Israel’s rejection of a two-state solution “unacceptable.”
“This refusal and denial of the Palestinian people’s right to state would indefinitely prolong a conflict that has become a major threat to global peace and security,” warned Guterres.
Such an outcome would “exacerbate polarization and embolden extremists around the world,” he added.
British Foreign Secretary David Cameron was also due to address the subject as he began a visit to the Middle East.
Cameron will arrive in Israel on Wednesday, the British Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office said in a statement. Visits are also planned to the Israeli-occupied West Bank, Qatar and Turkey in the hope of achieving a “lasting ceasefire” in Gaza.
In the West Bank, Cameron will meet Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and highlight Britain’s long-term support for a two-state solution “so that Israelis and Palestinians can live side by side in peace”, the Ministry of Defense said. Foreign Affairs.
The United States, Israel’s most important ally, has also said there is no way to resolve Israel’s long-term security problems and rebuild Gaza without a Palestinian state.
Earlier this week, the European Union’s top diplomat insisted on a two-state solution to the conflict, saying Israel’s plan to destroy the Palestinian group Hamas in Gaza was not working.
“No one wants to see this conflict last longer than necessary,” Cameron said. “An immediate pause is now necessary to deliver aid and evacuate the hostages. The situation is desperate.
Cameron said he was seeking to chart a path “to move from this pause to a lasting and permanent ceasefire without a resumption of hostilities”.
“Such a plan would require Hamas to agree to the release of all hostages, that Hamas no longer be responsible for rocket fire at Israel in Gaza, and that an agreement be in place for the Palestinian Authority to return to Gaza in order to to ensure governance and governance. services and, increasingly, security,” said the former Prime Minister.
According to the Foreign Office, Cameron will also urge Israel to open more crossing points to enable the delivery of aid to Gaza, including the Israeli port of Ashdod and the Karem Abu Salem crossing (known as the Kerem Shalom in Hebrew), and will demand that water, fuel and electricity supplies be restored to the coastal enclave.
Israel launched its latest war in Gaza after Hamas attacks in Israel on October 7.
According to the Gaza Health Ministry, at least 25,700 Palestinians, the majority of them women and children, have been killed in the conflict. Most of Gaza’s 2.3 million residents are displaced, causing a humanitarian disaster.
The death toll from the October 7 Hamas attacks in Israel stands at 1,139 dead.
