H. E. Mr. Nabil Fahmy welcomes the United Kingdom’s decision to ban trade in goods from Israeli settlements

His Excellency Mr Nabil Fahmy, Secretary-General of the League of Arab States, welcomed the United Kingdom’s decision to ban trade in goods produced in illegal Israeli settlements, as well as the stated intention of 12 friendly countries to take similar steps by imposing restrictions on trade in goods originating from settlements established in violation of international law.

His Excellency Mr Fahmy described these measures, set out in a clear statement by these countries, as a step in the right direction towards confronting Israel’s illegal settlement system and restoring a culture of accountability, rather than turning a blind eye to the occupying government’s flagrant disregard for international law.

The Secretary-General emphasised that concrete and practical measures to address the settlement system, which seeks to undermine the two-State solution, reflect a growing recognition by all concerned of the gravity of developments in the occupied Palestinian territory.

These include the system of apartheid established by the occupation, as well as the unleashing of settler terrorism against unarmed Palestinian civilians, under the protection and with the encouragement of the Israeli Government.

His Excellency Mr Fahmy called on all states that remain committed to international law and to the two-State solution as the only means of resolving the conflict between Palestine and Israel to join the courageous position taken by the United Kingdom, as clearly reflected in the statement issued by the 12 countries.

The Secretary-General stressed that practical and tangible measures against the racist settlement system would oblige the occupying Power to consider the costs of its illegal practices, following years in which accountability and the prospect of consequences have been absent.