Mansour: Settlements prove Israel rejects 1967 borders

The PLO ambassador at the United Nations on Wednesday condemned Israeli settlement activity in a series of letters to senior UN officials. "There have been confirmations by the UN Security Council and General Assembly, Human Rights Council and the Social and Economic Council on the illegality of all settlement activity in a number of resolutions which are still available, and we are still calling on Israel to respect and implement the resolutions," Mansour said. The UN ambassador sent letters to the President of the Security Council and head of the General Assembly, criticizing ongoing settlement building. Israel is obligated under the Road Map to freeze all settlement activity, Mansour said. "Israel, however continues directly to neglect and violate all international commitments," he added. International opinion is against settlement activity and the Security Council must intervene to stop Israeli policies which destroy geographical contiguity in the Palestinian territories, Mansour noted. Settlements are proof that Israel rejects a two state solution based on 1967 borders, the ambassador added. On Tuesday, Israel sanctioned three West Bank outposts, bringing widespread condemnation from the international community. "We don't think this is helpful to the process. We don't accept the legitimacy of continued settlement activity," US State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said. "As such, this sends a clear message to both the international community and to the Palestinians that Israel is more committed to land theft than peacemaking," senior official PLO official Hanan Ashrawi said.