Turkey condemns Israel's East Jerusalem residency law
Turkish Foreign Ministry has lashed out at Israeli parliament's recent move as a step to change East Jerusalem's demography.
- World
- Anadolu Agency
- Published Date: 12:00 | 11 March 2018
- Modified Date: 10:05 | 11 March 2018
Turkey on Saturday condemned a law passed by the Israeli Parliament which allows it to revoke the permanent residency status of Palestinians in East Jerusalem under certain conditions.
The Foreign Ministry said in a statement: "We reject this illegitimate step that reveals Israel's intention to increase efforts to change the demography of East Jerusalem, disregarding the basic human rights of Palestinians."
The ministry noted that the permanent residency of thousands of Palestinians living in Jerusalem has been revoked since the Israeli occupation in 1967.
Jerusalem remains at the heart of the Palestine-Israel conflict, with Palestinians hoping that occupied East Jerusalem might eventually serve as the capital of an independent Palestinian state.