Palestine slams international silence to Israeli violations

By Qais Abu Samra

RAMALLAH, Palestine (AA) - Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh warned Tuesday that anger was building across the occupied territories over Israeli escalation and international silence to the ongoing violations by Tel Aviv.

"Palestine deserves to be a recognized state by the international community, and the Palestinian people deserve to live in their independent state," Shtayyeh told a joint press conference with German Economy Minister Robert Habeck in the West Bank city of Ramallah.

He said Palestinians are suffering under the Israeli occupation and "are in need of a serious international protection."

Habeck, for his part, reiterated Germany's position that the two-state solution is the best way to solve the Palestinian-Israeli conflict.

The Palestine Liberation Organization and Israel in 1993 signed the Oslo Agreement which gave Palestinians a form of civil rule, but negotiations failed to complete the agreement and lead to a Palestinian state.

Negotiations between the Palestinians and Israelis collapsed in April 2014 as Tel Aviv refused to stop settlement construction and release Palestinian detainees imprisoned before 1993.

*Writing by Ahmed Asmar