24 March 2026
We, Representatives of Bahrain, Denmark, France, Greece, Latvia, Pakistan, Somalia and United Kingdom, guided by the UN Charter and recalling the relevant UN Security Council resolutions, including resolution 2334, reiterate our firm opposition to annexation of any part of the Occupied Palestinian Territory, and to any forcible displacement of the Palestinian people.
We recall that the Security Council has condemned all measures aimed at altering the demographic composition, character and status of the Palestinian Territory occupied since 1967, including East Jerusalem. Such measures violate international law, undermine ongoing peace efforts, run counter to the Comprehensive plan and jeopardize the prospect of achieving just and lasting peace.
The Council has also demanded that Israel immediately and completely cease all settlement activities in the occupied Palestinian territory, including East Jerusalem, and that it fully respect all of its legal obligations in this regard, reaffirming its determination to examine practical ways and means to secure the full implementation of its relevant resolutions.
This illegal settlement policy and Israeli settlers’ continuous and escalating attacks against the Palestinian civilian population, as well as the violence against Palestinian communities, including the recent killing of Palestinian children by Israeli forces, are unacceptable and must be brought to an immediate end and we call for those responsible to be held to account.
We also reaffirm the Council’s call for the preservation of the historic Status Quo at the holy sites in Jerusalem.
We express our deep concern regarding the grave humanitarian and economic situation unfolding in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, notably due to the severe restrictions on movement and access and to the withholding of Palestinian tax revenues by Israel. We call for these matters to be addressed urgently.
We reaffirm the collective commitment reflected in the New York Declaration to take concrete measures, in accordance with international law, and in line with the relevant UN resolutions and the 19 July 2024 Advisory Opinion of the International Court of Justice, to help realize the right of the Palestinian people to self-determination and to counter policies and threats of forcible displacement and annexation throughout the Occupied Palestinian Territory.
We reiterate our commitment towards achieving just and lasting peace on the basis of the relevant United Nations resolutions, the Madrid terms of reference, including the principle of land for peace, and the Arab Peace Initiative, ending the Israeli occupation and implementing the two-State solution, where two democratic States, an independent and sovereign Palestine and Israel, live side by side in peace and security within their secure and recognized borders on the basis of the 1967 lines, including with regard to Jerusalem, which remains the only viable path to ensure security, stability and sustainable peace in the region.