Jerusalem, Dec 18 (IANS) Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed that he would not permit the establishment of a Palestinian state, rejecting reports that Israel had agreed to a “path toward Palestinian statehood” as part of efforts to normalise relations with Saudi Arabia.
“Prime Minister Netanyahu has acted and continues to act against the establishment of a Palestinian state,” his office said on Tuesday in a statement, describing the reports as “completely false”.
The statement added that such a move would “endanger Israel’s security”.
Israeli media earlier reported that a concession on Palestinian statehood was being considered as part of ongoing negotiations for a normalisation agreement with Saudi Arabia, Xinhua news agency reported.
Meanwhile, the Saudis also strongly deny the report, saying there has been no breakthrough.
“The notion that the kingdom’s leadership has somehow modified its longstanding commitment to the establishment of an independent Palestinian state is equally baseless,” a statement issued to reporters by an unnamed Saudi official said.
“The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia will continue to work towards ending the war in Gaza and helping the Palestinian people achieve their right to an independent state,” the statement added.
Netanyahu, who has long regarded formal ties with the kingdom as a key strategic objective, dismissed the reports.
Israel captured the West Bank, East Jerusalem, and the Gaza Strip in the 1967 Middle East war. Palestinians seek to establish an independent state in those territories.
Netanyahu’s comments come amid mounting international criticism of Israel’s military campaign in Gaza, launched in October.
The offensive has drawn global condemnation, with Netanyahu and senior Israeli officials facing war crimes accusations at the International Criminal Court in The Hague.
Netanyahu has instead floated the idea of Arab countries like the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia contributing to the administration of Gaza after the war. However, those countries and others in the region have repeatedly said that they would not take part in the post-war management or reconstruction of Gaza without the Palestinian Authority’s (PA) involvement.
The US and Israel’s security establishment have warned that a failure to advance a viable alternative to Hamas rule, such as the PA, will allow the terror group to re-fill vacuums temporarily created by IDF operations in Gaza.
–IANS
int/khz
Disclaimer
The information contained in this website is for general information purposes only. The information is provided by TodayIndia.news and while we endeavour to keep the information up to date and correct, we make no representations or warranties of any kind, express or implied, about the completeness, accuracy, reliability, suitability or availability with respect to the website or the information, products, services, or related graphics contained on the website for any purpose. Any reliance you place on such information is therefore strictly at your own risk.
In no event will we be liable for any loss or damage including without limitation, indirect or consequential loss or damage, or any loss or damage whatsoever arising from loss of data or profits arising out of, or in connection with, the use of this website.
Through this website you are able to link to other websites which are not under the control of TodayIndia.news We have no control over the nature, content and availability of those sites. The inclusion of any links does not necessarily imply a recommendation or endorse the views expressed within them.
Every effort is made to keep the website up and running smoothly. However, TodayIndia.news takes no responsibility for, and will not be liable for, the website being temporarily unavailable due to technical issues beyond our control.
For any legal details or query please visit original source link given with news or click on Go to Source.
Our translation service aims to offer the most accurate translation possible and we rarely experience any issues with news post. However, as the translation is carried out by third part tool there is a possibility for error to cause the occasional inaccuracy. We therefore require you to accept this disclaimer before confirming any translation news with us.
If you are not willing to accept this disclaimer then we recommend reading news post in its original language.
