Ban doubles down on Israel comments in NY Times

Ban’s original comments were in response to a new wave of Israeli settlements by the Israeli Occupation Authorities, which on January 25 approved the construction of 153 new settlement units in the West Bank, the Palestine News Network reported.

The reality in the West Bank has pushed some Palestinians to enforce an occupation against their own people.

Israeli fire has killed 150 Palestinians during that time, with 105 identified by Israel as attackers.

At the same time, thousands of Palestinian homes in the West Bank risk demolition because of obstacles that may be legal on paper but are discriminatory in practice.

Meanwhile the premier of the Palestinian consensus government Rami Hamdallah called on Hamas movement “to positively react to the calls of forming a wider national unity government with the participation of all political powers”.

About one week ago, the head of the PA’s General Intelligence Service, Majed Faraj, has faced a sharp wave of criticism from the Palestinian public, for announcing that the PA has halted 200 allegedly intended stab attacks by teenagers, in order to avoid more intensions and escalation. His gun was registered to the Palestinian Authority.

Other Palestinians have been killed in clashes with Israeli troops amid spiralling violence.

“France will engage in the coming weeks in the preparation of an worldwide conference bringing together the Israeli and Palestinian parties and their main partners, American, European, Arab, notably to preserve and make happen the solution of two States”, Fabius said.

Palestinians seek a state in Gaza, the West Bank and East Jerusalem, parts of which have been occupied by Israel since the 1967 Middle East war.

Such steps can start with housing, water, energy, communications, agriculture and access to natural resources.

Also since October, Israel has arrested 2,400 people including over 1,200 children, according to a report released by the Commission of Detainees and Ex-Detainee’ Affairs in late December.

Others remain completely shut and Palestinians who don’t have Ramallah listed as their place of residence on their Israeli-issued IDs are not allowed to enter, he said.

“Criticism of the United Nations – or attacks against me – comes with the territory”, Ban wrote in the editorial.

Everyone is free to pick and choose what they like or dislike from speeches. “The status quo is untenable”, Ban says.

He said a collapsed tunnel that killed seven fighters in Gaza last week was like the one used to capture Shaul and that led to the release of Palestinian prisoners in return for Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit in 2011.