UN chief: Settlements must be stopped

Ban Ki-moon tours West Bank, says he hopes peace talks will resume soon.

By ASSOCIATED PRESS
ban ki moon fayyad 311 (photo credit: AP)
ban ki moon fayyad 311
(photo credit: AP)
Israeli settlement building anywhere on occupied land is illegal and must be stopped, UN chief Ban Ki-moon said Saturday, after getting a closer look at some of the Israeli enclaves scattered across Palestinian-claimed territories.
During a high-profile West Bank visit, Ban was escorted to an observation point by Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Salam Fayyad.
From the hill on the outskirts of Ramallah, the UN secretary-general was able to see the sprawling settlement of Givat Ze’ev, home to 11,000 Israelis who live in rows of red-roofed houses. The panorama also included Jewish neighborhoods in east Jerusalem.
The brief geography lesson came a day after Ban, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and representatives of the EU and Russia — known together as the Quartet — met in Moscow to try to find a way to restart Israeli-Palestinian peace talks.
UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, right, gestures with Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Salam Fayyad, during a tour of the West Bank city of Ramallah, Saturday.
UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, right, gestures with Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Salam Fayyad, during a tour of the West Bank city of Ramallah, Saturday.
The mediators urged Israel to halt all settlement construction, which has emerged as a key obstacle to renewing talks. Israel has agreed to curb settlement construction in the West Bank, but not in east Jerusalem.
On Saturday, Ban rejected Israel's distinction between east Jerusalem and the West Bank, noting that both are occupied lands.
"The world has condemned Israel's settlement plans in east Jerusalem," Ban told a news conference after his brief tour. "Let us be clear. All settlement activity is illegal anywhere in occupied territory and must be stopped."
The UN chief reassured his Palestinian hosts that the international community supports the establishment of a Palestinian state, and also expressed concern about what he said was a worsening humanitarian situation in blockaded Hamas-ruled Gaza.
Earlier this month, Israelis and Palestinians had agreed to indirect talks, with US envoy George Mitchell to shuttle between Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas and Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu. However, the indirect talks were put on hold after Israel announced plans to build 1,600 new houses for Jews in east Jerusalem.
The announcement prompted a major diplomatic row between Israel and the US, though Clinton suggested Friday that a way could be found to renew negotiations. Clinton has asked Netanyahu for specific gestures, including canceling the most recent housing plan, and is to hear from the premier in a meeting in Washington early next week.
Meanwhile, Mitchell is returning to the region over the weekend and is planning to brief Abbas on US efforts. Abbas has said he will not negotiate with Israel directly unless it freezes all settlement construction, including in east Jerusalem.
Ban said Saturday that he hopes the indirect talks will be launched very soon.
On Sunday, Ban is to visit Gaza. Israel and Egypt imposed a border blockade after Hamas seized Gaza by force in 2007. The closure, including the ban on the import of building materials, has prevented reconstruction of thousands of apartments destroyed or damaged during Operation Cast Lead more than a year ago.
"I go to Gaza tomorrow to express my solidarity with the plight of thePalestinians here and to underscore the need to end the blockade," hesaid.
Several UN projects in Gaza, including 150 low-income apartments in thetown of Khan Yunis, have also been put on hold as a result of theblockade. Ban confirmed Saturday that Israel has given the go-ahead forthe Khan Yunis project. He said Israel's decision is a first step butthat more needs to be done.
"I am deeply concerned about the worsening humanitarian situation" in Gaza, he said.