Bangladesh condemns Israel razing Palestinian homes

By Md. Kamruzzaman

DHAKA, Bangladesh (AA) - Bangladesh has strongly condemned the recent demolition of dozens of Palestinian houses in East Jerusalem by Israeli occupation forces.

“We are steadfast and resolute in our support for all the relevant UN Security Council, UN General Assembly, Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) Summit, and Council of Foreign Minister resolutions and urge the world community to ask Israel, the occupying power, to desist from such illegal acts,” a Foreign Ministry statement said late Tuesday.

Calling the demolition a clear violation of the spirit and objectives of UN Resolutions 242 and 338, the statement added that Bangladesh conveys its deep sympathy and stands in solidarity and unison with the people of Palestine.

It said: “We express our solidarity with the recent statement by the OIC Secretary General that calls upon the international community to coerce Israeli occupation to desist from its illegal practices and put an end to all its actions that violate the rights of Palestinians.”

Dhaka also warned that such unilateral acts by Israel have led to ominous developments in the area. “This illegal act of demolition tends to thwart efforts for securing peace in the region.”

It also hurts international efforts to support the inalienable rights of the people of Palestine and establish the state of Palestine on the basis of two-state solution using the pre-1967 borders with Jerusalem as its capital, which Bangladesh supports, the statement said.

On Monday, bulldozers accompanied by hundreds of Israeli soldiers moved into the neighborhood of Wadi Homs in East Jerusalem and began to raze several buildings in the area.

Israeli authorities claim that the buildings were constructed without a permit.

Israel occupied East Jerusalem, where the flashpoint Al-Aqsa Mosque compound is located, during the 1967 Arab-Israeli War.

In a move never recognized by the international community, Israel annexed the entire city in 1980, claiming it the self-proclaimed Jewish state’s “eternal and undivided” capital.

Jerusalem remains at the heart of the decades-long Middle East dispute, with Palestinians hoping that East Jerusalem might one day serve as the capital of a Palestinian state.