Jordan's King Abdullah II and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman discussed developments in the Gaza Strip and the occupied West Bank on Monday, in light of ongoing Israeli attacks.
This came during their meeting in the Saudi city of Neom, as part of an official visit of undisclosed duration. King Abdullah II began his visit to Saudi Arabia on Monday, according to a statement from the Jordanian Royal Court.
The Court said the two sides discussed "bilateral relations and ways to strengthen them to achieve common interests and serve Arab and Islamic issues." They also addressed "the most prominent developments in the region, most notably the current developments in Gaza and the West Bank," according to the same statement.
"End the disaster"
Meanwhile, Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan and his British counterpart, David Lammy, stressed the importance of ending the humanitarian catastrophe Palestinians have been experiencing in the Gaza Strip for 22 months.
This came during a phone call between the two leaders on Sunday evening, according to a statement from the Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in response to the genocide committed by Israel with US support since October 7, 2023.
The statement said that Bin Farhan and Lami discussed "developments in the Gaza Strip" and stressed "the need to halt Israeli attacks and violations and end the humanitarian catastrophe in the Strip."
Egyptian rejection
In turn, Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdel Aty called on the European Union to act quickly to prevent Israel from consolidating its occupation of the Gaza Strip.
This came during a phone call between Abdel-Ati and his German counterpart, Johann Wadephul, on Sunday evening, according to a statement by the Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Monday.
During the call, Abdel-Ati affirmed Egypt's categorical rejection of the Israeli Security Cabinet's decision to "expand military operations in Gaza and consolidate the Israeli occupation of the Strip."
He warned that this decision "poses an extreme danger and will result in further deterioration and instability in the Gaza Strip." He added that it "aims to entrench the illegal occupation of Palestinian territories," and called on the European Union to "act quickly to halt the dangerous Israeli escalation."
"An unprecedented disaster"
In a related development, French President Emmanuel Macron criticized Israel's plans to intensify its military operation in Gaza on Monday, describing them as threatening an unprecedented catastrophe. He proposed forming an international coalition with a UN mandate to stabilize Gaza.
"The Israeli cabinet's announcement to expand its operations in Gaza City and the tent areas of Al-Mawasi and reoccupy them heralds an unprecedented catastrophe and a step toward endless war," Macron said in remarks sent to reporters by his office. "The Israeli hostages and the residents of Gaza will remain the main victims of this strategy."
Editor's Picks
Turkish Parliament Speaker: Anas Al-Sharif was the voice and conscience of Gaza and a symbol of its resistance, and he was martyred with courage.
Anas Al-Sharif: The journey of a journalist who chose to expose Israel's crimes in Gaza until his martyrdom
The occupation continues its raids in several areas, and new settlement outposts are established in the West Bank.
Gaza buries six journalists amid Palestinian and international condemnation. Director of Al-Shifa Hospital: The occupation is preparing for a major massacre.
"Two-state solution"
For his part, Spanish Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares condemned Israel's decision to occupy the entire Gaza Strip, noting that his country and the European Union will never recognize Israel's unilateral annexation of the Gaza Strip and the occupied West Bank.
This came in a television interview on the official RTVE channel on Sunday, in which he affirmed that "Israel's plan to occupy all of Gaza is a mistake, and Spain condemns and categorically rejects it."
He added that "Israel's (potential) occupation of Gaza will only bring more suffering and death, prevent the release of prisoners, and destabilize the future of Israelis." He continued, "Spain and the European Union will never recognize Israel's unilateral decision to annex Gaza and the West Bank," stressing that "Gaza is part of the State of Palestine and must remain under Palestinian control."
Albares emphasized that Spain, like most countries in the world, believes only in a two-state solution (Palestinian and Israeli). He stated that Israel "does not respect international law," and that Spain already imposes sanctions on Israel, and that some sanctions are encouraged within the European Union.
"Settlement in Gaza"
In contrast, far-right Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich called on Monday for occupying "significant parts" of the Gaza Strip and settling there.
"My plan is for large parts of Gaza to be under our control and sovereignty, and we can also settle there," Smotrich told Kan, the official Israeli Broadcasting Corporation.
The leader of the Religious Zionism party claimed, "This is the only way to maintain security. This is not the prime minister's plan, I know that."
On Friday morning, the Israeli security cabinet approved a plan to begin occupying Gaza City, displacing its population of approximately one million to the southern part of the Strip, then encircling the city and carrying out incursions into residential areas.
This will be followed by a second phase, which includes the occupation of refugee camps in central Gaza, large parts of which have been destroyed by Israel, as part of an ongoing war with US support since October 7, 2023.
Since October 7, 2023, Israel has been committing genocide in Gaza, including killing, starvation, destruction, and forced displacement, ignoring all international calls and orders from the International Court of Justice to halt it.
The genocide left 61,430 Palestinian martyrs and 153,213 wounded, most of them children and women. More than 9,000 people were missing, hundreds of thousands were displaced, and a famine killed 217 people, including 100 children.
In parallel with the war of extermination in the Gaza Strip, the Israeli occupation army and settlers in the West Bank, including occupied Jerusalem, killed at least 1,013 Palestinians, injured nearly 7,000 others, and arrested more than 18,500, according to Palestinian data.
