Spain condemns Israel's move to tighten control in occupied West Bank

The Spanish government strongly condemned Israel's latest measures concerning the occupied West Bank on Monday, warning that they violate international law and threaten the viability of a future Palestinian state.

In a statement issued by the Spanish Foreign Ministry, Madrid criticized Israel's move to repeal a law limiting the acquisition of real estate and the registration of property in the West Bank as well as new administrative measures granting Israeli authorities jurisdiction over violations related to water management, environmental damage and archaeological sites in Areas A and B.

Spain said the decisions alter the status quo in the West Bank and undermine the territorial and political unity of a Palestinian state based on the 1967 borders, including Gaza and the West Bank, with East Jerusalem as its capital.

The government also reiterated its concern over what it described as successive Israeli decisions expanding settlements in the West Bank, which it said are illegal under international law.

In this context, Spain recalled its condemnation of Israel's approval in December of 19 new settlements as well as developments related to the E1 project, a highly controversial Israeli settlement plan located east of Jerusalem in the occupied West Bank.

"These measures and any attempt at annexation are unacceptable and jeopardize current efforts to implement the Peace Plan and the ceasefire, increasing the risk of triggering a new wave of violence," the statement said.

Spain urged Israel to comply with its obligations as an occupying power under the Fourth Geneva Convention and to end what it described as an expansionist policy and the impunity enjoyed by illegal settlers.

Israel's security cabinet approved measures Sunday aimed at altering the legal and civil framework in the occupied West Bank to strengthen Israeli control.

The Israeli public broadcaster KAN said the decisions include repealing a law that barred the sale of land in the West Bank to private Israeli individuals, unsealing land ownership records, and shifting authority for building permits in a settlement bloc near Hebron from a Palestinian municipality to Israel's civil administration.