Following Israeli authorization for 3,000 new settlements in the West Bank despite a United Nations resolution criticizing them, the Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Wednesday issued a statement condemning the Israeli construction on disputed land.
“We condemn the Israeli government’s approval of the construction of 3,000 additional units in illegal settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories” read the statement.
Turkey and Israel just recently mended relations that had been strained over a 2010 incident in which 10 Turks died when Israeli commandos attacked a Turkish aid ship on its way to Gaza.
Turkey’s statement further said that Israel’s continuation of such acts threaten and destroy the basis for a lasting peace in the Palestine-Israel conflict.
At the end of 2016, the United Nations Security Council approved a resolution that Israeli settlements in Palestinian territory have no legal validity.
