Palestinian PM: Jordan Valley is Part and Parcel of Palestine

Jordan Valley, MINA – With the Palestinian government holding its weekly meeting on Monday (16/9), in the village of Fasayel in the northern Jordan Valley, Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh stressed that the Jordan Valley and the northern Dead Sea are part and parcel of the geography of Palestine and therefore talk about annexing it to Israel is null and void.

Speaking at the start of the meeting which the cabinet decided to convene in the Jordan Valley after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has declared that he intends to annex it after he wins the elections and a day after the Israeli government also held its weekly meeting in the Jordan Valley, Shtayyeh said that the meeting in Fasayel and the Jordan Valley is to affirm its Palestinian identity.

As quoted from WAFA News Agency, “The government is meeting today in the Jordan Valley not to condemn or denounce, but to be present among our people to strengthen their resilience on issues related to raising livestock, building water tanks and rehabilitation of the Roman pond, which will feed more than 3500 dunums of Fasayel,” he said.

“The area of the Palestinian valleys is 1622 square kilometers and constitutes 28% of the area of the West Bank,” he said. ”Talk about the annexation of the Jordan Valley is null. The Palestinian is here before the (Israeli) settler and the settlers are here illegally. Talk about annexing the Jordan Valley is null and void and condemned by all parties. It is intended to win electoral votes.”

The Prime Minister said his government is going to pursue Israel in international courts for exploiting Palestinian land in the Jordan Valley, explaining that Israel has invested in the Jordan Valley and has planted more than one million palm trees in Palestinian land since its 1967 occupation until today.

“We will keep this fight against the occupation on the ground and in various international forums,” he said.

“The Jordan Valley is a major component of the Palestinian landscape,” he said. “It is part of our integrated and congruent Palestinian state. The government will take the decisions that support the steadfastness of our people here.”(T/R04/P2)

Mi’raj News Agency (MINA)