‘Declaration of war’: Amman warns against displacement of Palestinians to Jordan
Jordan’s Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi has warned that any Israeli attempt to displace Palestinians from the occupied West Bank to Jordan will be considered a "declaration of war."
Safadi’s remarks in a joint press conference with his German counterpart Annalena Baerbock in Amman came as the forcible displacement of Palestinians from the West Bank and Gaza to Jordan and Egypt, respectively, has been an Israeli goal for decades.
Referring to Israel’s largest incursion in the occupied West Bank in about two decades, Jordan’s top diplomat said “Israel is waging another war”, amid the regime's ongoing war on the Gaza Strip.
He noted that the tensions in the West Bank could lead to a wider war in the region.
Safadi noted that Amman is preparing a legal file regarding the Israeli incursions into holy sites in occupied al-Quds, describing such raids as “playing with fire that will burn the entire region.”
On August 13, Israel’s hawkish minister Itamar Ben-Gvir led hundreds of settlers into al-Aqsa Mosque compound in the occupied East al-Quds.
During his recent provocative visit, Ben-Gvir said that it was his “policy” to allow Jewish prayers on the al-Aqsa Mosque compound, Islam’s third-holiest site where only Muslims are allowed to pray under a status quo arrangement originally reached more than a century ago.
Ben-Gvir later revealed his intention to build a Jewish synagogue inside the al-Aqsa Mosque compound. He said that if he could, he would build a synagogue on the al-Asqa Mosque complex.
Elsewhere in his remarks, Safadi urged the international community to take action to stop the escalation of the situation in the West Bank and the region.
The minister added that Israeli actions on the ground have killed all opportunities for achieving a just peace.
“Stopping the aggression on Gaza and the escalation in the West Bank” is “the first step to prevent the situation in the region from worsening further.”
Safadi emphasized Jordan’s support for a prisoner swap deal between Israel and the Palestinian resistance movement, blaming Netanyahu for obstructing its completion as he “changed his positions and backed out of his commitments”.
Since the start of Israel’s aggression on Gaza, the West Bank has also seen a rise in violence from Israeli forces and settlers that claimed the lives of hundreds of Palestinians.
The Israeli army launched its largest incursion into the northern West Bank in two decades on August 28, killing dozens of Palestinians so far.
According to the Palestinian Health Ministry, at least 691 Palestinians have been killed and more than 5,700 others injured by Israeli troops since October 7.
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