Deputy Secretary-General Rosemary DiCarlo said the situation in the Middle East is at a critical point, although the truce in the Gaza Strip has opened up a chance for stabilization. Despite the ceasefire, strikes continue and the humanitarian situation remains dire and aid restrictions remain. At the same time, the situation in the West Bank is deteriorating – Israeli operations and settlement activity are expanding. The UN calls for an urgent strengthening of the truce, de-escalation and the resumption of the political process based on a two-state solution.
Nebenzya criticized Israel's new decisions on the West Bank (including East Jerusalem), calling them “a naked attempt to legalize settlement expansion in the Occupied Palestinian Territory” and “change the status quo” in the West Bank.
“Israel, under various pretexts – be it security or the fight against terrorism – continues to violate its treaty obligations. […] Such disregard for international law and the policy of creating irreversible facts “on the ground” cause shock and rejection among the majority of members of the world community,” Nebenzya said.
Afterwards, Saar criticized Nebenzi's performance.
“It was quite funny to hear representatives of the Russian Federation talking about law, international law, occupation, expansion of territories and peaceful settlement. I admit, I had to restrain myself not to laugh out loud,” said the head of the Israeli Foreign Ministry.
