Arab-Islamic Bloc Condemns Occupation's Confiscation of West Bank Lands

Eight Arab and Islamic countries, today, Tuesday, issued a unified stance strongly condemning the Israeli occupation authorities' classification of vast areas in the occupied West Bank as 'state lands'. The diplomatic alliance included Saudi Arabia, Jordan, the UAE, Qatar, Egypt, Turkey, Pakistan, and Indonesia, affirming in a joint statement that this step aims to impose a new administrative and legal reality that accelerates de facto annexation operations.

The signatory countries to the statement emphasized the absence of the occupation's sovereignty over Palestinian territories, considering these practices an attempt to displace the Palestinian people and obstruct any international efforts to achieve stability in the region. This move comes at a time when the occupation authorities, since mid-February, have begun unprecedented measures to register lands in Area C - which represents about 61% of the West Bank - under the categories of 'absentee property' and 'state lands', in a step that is the first of its kind since 1967.

For its part, the United Nations entered the crisis, with international sources reporting Secretary-General António Guterres' condemnation of these measures, affirming that settlement expansion in the West Bank and East Jerusalem lacks any legal legitimacy. Previous reports warned that the occupation government seeks to approve a proposal aimed at gradually annexing 15% of Area C by 2030, exploiting legal loopholes to seize lands whose Palestinian owners do not have officially registered ownership documents.

These illegal measures constitute a grave violation of international law, contradict Security Council resolutions, particularly Resolution 2334, and undermine peace prospects.