Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz asked the army to prepare a plan to transfer to the police authority over Israelis who illegally seize Palestinian land in the occupied West Bank.
Katz argued that the role of the Israeli army in the West Bank should be limited to fighting Palestinians. He proposed transferring full responsibility for public order in so-called civilian matters, including attacks carried out by Israelis, to the police.
Hussein al-Sheikh, Vice President of the State of Palestine, strongly criticized Katz’s plan. Al-Sheikh said the arrangement was an attempt to establish sovereignty over the West Bank and cement the illegal annexation of the occupied territories.
Al-Sheikh said the plan clearly violated international law, decisions of the international community and signed agreements. He stated that Israel was attempting to impose its own laws and sovereignty on Palestinian territories, including the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem.
Al-Sheikh calls on the United Nations Security Council
Al-Sheikh stressed that all forms of settlement activity were illegal. He said Israel had no right to sovereignty over any part of the Palestinian territories it occupied in 1967.
The Vice President of the State of Palestine called on the international community, particularly the United Nations Security Council, to fulfill its responsibilities. Al-Sheikh also urged the international community to stop Israel’s unilateral and dangerous steps and ensure that the country complies with international decisions and the rules of international law.
Israeli media assessed that, if Katz’s request were implemented, the plan would constitute a new step toward annexation.