FM urges Israel to halt violations

AMMAN — Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi on Thursday met with his Israeli counterpart Gabi Ashkenazi to discuss the issues related to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

During their meeting at the King Hussein Bridge, Safadi urged Israel to cease its provocations and respect the legal and historical status quo at Al Aqsa Mosque/Al Haram Al Sharif. 

The foreign minister stressed that, by virtue of the Hashemite Custodianship over Jerusalem’s Islamic and Christian holy sites, Jordan will continue to exert all efforts to preserve the legal and historical status quo in the city and protect its Arab Islamic and Christian identity. 

Safadi also called for a return to negotiations in light of the recently resumed security and economic cooperation between the Palestinian Authority and Israel, Petra reported. 

There is no alternative to the two-state solution, Safadi noted, adding that achieving a fair, comprehensive peace is a regional and international necessity. 

Materialising the two-state solution would lead to the establishment of the independent, sovereign and viable Palestinian state, living in peace with Israel, on the June 4, 1967, lines with East Jerusalem as its capital, in accordance with international law and the Arab Peace Initiative, Safadi added. 

The ministers also discussed issues related to water, lifting bans on Jordanian exports to the West Bank, managing borders during COVID-19, and Jordan supplying additional electricity to the Palestinian Authority.