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UN envoy to Walla: Israel and the Palestinian Authority should make decisions to prevent an escalation in Ramadan - Walla! News

2023-03-19T08:44:10.094Z


Senior officials from Israel, the Palestinian Authority, Egypt, Jordan, and the United States are meeting today in Sharm el-Sheikh to discuss efforts to calm tensions in the West Bank. The UN envoy emphasized that he is concerned about the possible consequences of the plan to weaken the justice system for the Palestinians in the West Bank


On video: The security forces are now operating in the Jenin refugee camp (documentation on social networks according to Article 27 A of the Copyright Law)

The UN envoy for the Middle East Tor Vansland said in an interview with Walla! that the Israeli leadership and the Palestinian leadership should make strategic decisions to ensure that the month of Ramadan passes without a violent escalation.

In the news center

  • Senior Israeli, Palestinian, American, Egyptian and Jordanian officials are gathering today in Sharm el-Sheikh to discuss efforts to calm tensions in the West Bank ahead of the month of Ramadan.

  • The Israeli delegation will be headed by National Security Adviser Tzachi Hanegbi.

    The head of the Shin Bet Ronan Bar and the coordinator of operations in the territories Rasan Alian will also participate in the talks.

  • On the Palestinian side, the Minister of Civil Affairs Hussain al-Sheikh, the head of intelligence Majed Faraj and Abu Mazen's political adviser Majdi al-Khalidi will participate in the talks.

  • President Joe Biden's senior Middle East adviser Brett McGurk and the foreign ministers of Egypt and Jordan will also attend the meeting in Sharm el-Sheikh.

  • This is a follow-up meeting to the security summit that took place in Aqaba three weeks ago.

    During that summit, Israel and the Palestinians agreed to temporarily stop unilateral measures that could lead to escalation and increase security coordination.

  • However, during and after the summit another escalation took place.

    First, a terrorist carried out an attack during which two Israeli civilians were murdered in the village of Hawara, and then hundreds of settlers carried out a pogrom during which they burned dozens of houses in the village.

"We need to prevent the escalation in the month of Ramadan."

Netanyahu and Abu Mazen (photo: image processing, Flash 90, Yonatan Zindel)

what are they saying

  • Wensland admitted that it is very difficult to agree on a strategy to contain the escalation in light of the lack of trust between Israel and the Palestinians, but emphasized that if the understandings reached at the summit in Aqaba are implemented, they could help push things in the right direction.

  • "You cannot say that you do not agree with what is written on the paper that you signed two minutes after you left the room. What is written there must be implemented," said the UN envoy, alluding to the comments published by the Prime Minister's Office and Ministers Smotrich and Ben Gvir after the meeting in Aqaba, which they disavowed from the summaries.

  • "Responsible leaders need to take decisions now to ensure calm in Ramadan," he said.

Behind the Scenes

  • The UN envoy met in the last two weeks with senior Israeli and Palestinian officials as well as with representatives of the Jordanian Waqf that manages the Al-Aqsa Mosque complex to discuss practical steps that will ensure that Palestinians can come from different parts of the West Bank to pray in Jerusalem during Ramadan without disturbances or conflicts.

  • Vanceland said that this includes security measures, economic measures and even better and wiser management of the entry of worshipers into the mosque complex.

    "Palestinians should be allowed to come and pray at Al-Aqsa Mosque during Ramadan without any interference. Period," he said.

"You can't say you don't agree with what's written on the paper you signed two minutes after you left the room" (Photo: Yaniv Khalif, Yaniv Khalif)

The big picture

  • Vanesland said that ensuring calm and peace in the West Bank and East Jerusalem will also be key to maintaining peace in the Gaza Strip.

    According to him, he has not received any indication that Israel or Hamas in Gaza are interested in escalation.

  • The UN envoy said he is concerned about the general trend of escalating violence in the West Bank. He emphasized that he respects Israel's need for security and the prevention of terrorist attacks, but noted that the dramatic increase in the number of Palestinians killed in IDF raids in Palestinian cities only exacerbates the situation.

  • "The number of incidents should decrease. The number of people who are killed should decrease. The number of Palestinians who experience harassment should decrease," he said.

Why pay attention?

  • The UN envoy said that he believes that the Israeli government and the Israeli security forces are not paying enough attention to the violence by settlers against Palestinians in the West Bank.

  • "It's a strategic choice to prevent this. I don't know why they don't do it. I ask this question in every meeting I have with senior Israeli officials and I'm still waiting for an answer. It's completely unacceptable. It can't be that the Hvara case is repeated," he said.

More in Walla!

  • The national leadership of parents: We will strike on Wednesday the elementary and high schools following the graduation schedule

  • Hundreds of members of the special operations and cyber forces: starting today - we will not serve in the reserves

  • Saving from the first moment: how to start saving in four simple steps

What next

  • Vanesland said he is closely following the internal discussions in Israel regarding the plan to weaken the justice system and stressed that he is concerned about the plan's impact on the Palestinians in the West Bank.

  • The Supreme Court is the only institution that Palestinians in the West Bank can turn to in order to try and protect their rights in the face of actions by the army or settlers, especially in regards to the protection of their private property.

    "The issue of the legal plan does not only affect Israel and its character, it also has certain consequences for the Palestinian side and the trends on the ground. I am focusing on that," said the UN envoy.

  • news

  • Political-political

Tags

  • Egypt

  • Sharm el-Sheikh

  • the Palestinian Authority

  • Ramadan

Source: walla

All news articles on 2023-03-19

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