Eight Countries Condemn Israel's West Bank Land Plan

Eight Arab and Muslim-majority countries issued a joint statement on Tuesday condemning Israel's approval of a plan to designate large areas of the occupied West Bank as state land, a move described by the nations as a violation of international law that accelerates settlement expansion and threatens Palestinian statehood.

The statement, released from Doha and endorsed by the foreign ministers of Qatar, Jordan, the United Arab Emirates, Indonesia, Pakistan, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, and Egypt, criticized the Israeli government's decision to initiate comprehensive land registration procedures across parts of Area C in the West Bank. This region, which makes up about 61 percent of the territory, has remained under full Israeli administrative and security control since the 1995 Oslo II Accord. The plan, approved over the weekend and the first of its kind since Israel's occupation of the West Bank began in 1967, would convert unregistered land into state property unless owners provide documentation meeting strict Israeli standards. Critics, including Palestinian officials, argue that such requirements are nearly impossible for many Palestinians displaced over decades, effectively...