Viability of two-state solution 'steadily eroding,' UN chief warns

United Nations, Sep 24 (IANS) UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned that the viability of a two-state solution is steadily eroding, now reaching its most critical level in more than a generation.

In his statement at a UN Security Council high-level meeting on the Palestinian question, Guterres, on Tuesday, highlighted relentless settlement expansion, de facto annexation, and forced displacement as evidence of the erosion, Xinhua news agency reported.

"Cycles of deadly violence, including by extremist settlers, have entrenched an unlawful Israeli occupation and pushed us perilously close to a point of no return," he added.

Israel's recent approval of settlement construction in the E1 area is especially alarming. If implemented, it would sever the occupied West Bank, destroying the territorial contiguity of a Palestinian state, he warned. "Israeli settlements are not just a political issue. They are a flagrant violation of international law."

Guterres commended France and Saudi Arabia for the resumption of the high-level international conference on the implementation of the two-state solution on Monday, and welcomed the recognition of Palestinian statehood in the past days by many more countries.

He called on member states to seize the momentum of the international conference.

The so-called "day after" in Gaza must be anchored in international law, reject any form of ethnic cleansing, and have a clear political horizon toward a viable two-state solution, said Guterres, adding that there is a need to urgently reverse the dangerous trends on the ground.

Relentless settler expansion and violence, and the looming threat of annexation, must stop. The calls of the International Court of Justice must be heeded, including for Israel to immediately cease settlement activities and end its unlawful presence in the occupied Palestinian territory. The illegal occupation must end, he said.

A just and lasting peace will never be built through more violence. It demands a collective commitment -- to diplomacy, to international law, to the dignity of all people, said the UN chief. "There are actions that the Security Council must take. There are responsibilities each member of this council must uphold. We cannot let this fragile moment slip away."

--IANS

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