Iran condemns Israeli settlement expansion
Updated: Thursday, November 19, 2009
12:30GMT—7:30AM/EST
Washington, 19 November (WashingtonTV)—Iran on Thursday condemned Israel’s approval of 900 new homes in a settlement in East Jerusalem, and accused European states of turning a blind eye to these “violations”.
Foreign Ministry spokesperson, Ramin Mehmanparast, described the move as a “new occupation and the continuation of the impudence of the Zionist regime in the face of global demands to stop settlement building,” reports the official IRNA news agency.
The United Nations, the United States and European Union have all strongly criticized the Israeli move to expand the settlement, which is built on land Israel captured in the 1967 Six-Day War and annexed to the Jerusalem municipality.
Mehmanparast called the Israeli decision “unforgivable” and “dangerous”, and called on the international community, in particular the Organization of the Islamic Conference, to take action on the issue.
“European countries are onlookers to the successive violations of this regime,” he said.
US President Barack Obama said on Wednesday that he did not think that settlement building would contribute to Israel’s security, and said it would make efforts to reach a peace deal with the Palestinians more difficult.
Israel has dismissed the criticism, describing construction at the settlement as a “routine process”.
Construction work on the settlement is unlikely to start for another three or four years, once the plans gain final authorization, Israel’s Interior Ministry said, according to the BBC.
Sources: IRNA, BBC News
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