NEW YORK – Costa: “De facto” annexation in the West Bank threatens the two-state solution

NEW YORK, September 23 /ATSH-AA/ – European Council President António Costa warned that developments in the occupied West Bank such as “de facto” annexation threaten the prospects for a two-state solution.

“In the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, the two-state solution is being threatened every day,” Costa said during a high-level event on the two-state solution and the comprehensive peace plan for Gaza, on the sidelines of the 81st UN General Assembly.

“We see the images and hear the testimonies of what is happening every day in the West Bank, settler violence, impunity, the displacement of entire communities and ‘de facto’ annexation. These settlements are illegal under international law,” he said, adding that urgent action is needed to preserve the two-state solution and the path to peace.

Costa called for renewed legitimacy for the Palestinian Authority through elections, saying the European Union strongly supports such elections and calls on Israel to facilitate them.

He said the international community, together with the Palestinian Authority, must offer the young generation “renewed hope for a different future.” “Action is required to preserve the two-state solution and the path to peace,” Costa said.