Israel's new cabinet 'a threat' to peace

Israel's new cabinet 'a threat' to peace
On the anniversary of the Palestinian Nakba, the Arab League says Israel's government is an obstacle to peace and the two-state solution.
2 min read
15 May, 2015
Group of pro-Palestinians stage an anti-Israel protest outside the Israeli ambassador's residence in Ankara [AFP]
The Arab League has warned against Israel's continuous hardline and aggressive policies in the occupied Palestinian territories, in a statement released for the anniversary of the Nakba on Friday.

The organisation, which represents Arab countries, stressed that Israel's policies threatened international security and peace and diminished the chances of a two-state solution.

The Arab League also called on all the parties involved in the peace process, in addition to the UN Security Council, to take full responsibility and decisively stand in the face of Israel, accusing it of ignoring international resolutions and peace initiatives.

The Nakba, or the catastrophe, is the day Palestinians remember the loss of their historical homeland and the expulsion of many Palestinians at the expense of the newly-created state of Israel.

"15 May 1948 is a date that will not be forgotten and will remain imprinted in the mind of the Arab nation and the Palestinian population, because it is the date on which Palestine was usurped and its populated displaced," the statement reads.

"It was the date on which Palestinians lost their land and possessions and were subjected to attempts to efface their national identity and their legitimate and inalienable rights. It was the date on which the creation of Israel was announced."

The statement highlighted the perceived injustice of the United Nations partion plan for British mandate Palestine, which gave Jews, many of whom were new immigrants to the country, more land, despite having a smaller population than Palestinian Arabs.

"This prejudiced and unjust decision, which was opposed by the Palestinian people and Arab countries as it took away the land from its real owners, has resulted in the forced displacement of hundreds of thousands of Palestinians and the annexation of an important part of Arab lands that contain many Muslim and Christian sacred states," the statement goes on to say.

The statement also argued that the partition decision went against the principles of democracy, United Nations charters and international law, as it was made contrary to the will of the majority of Palestine's residents and their right to self-determination.

Palestinians had contested the UN's legal jurisdiction to recommend the partition of their country and had at the time suggested that the matter be transferred to the International Court of Justice in The Hague, to give an advisory opinion on the UN's jurisdiction in recommending the partition of Palestine or the implementation of such a decision against the will of the Palestinian people.