Israel's Withdrawal from Arab Lands Key to Mideast Peace - GCC FMs

New York, 17 Dzulhijjah 1437/19 September 2016 (MINA) – Foreign Ministers of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) reaffirmed that lasting and just peace in the Middle East would only be achieved when Israel fully withdrew from all Arab territories it occupied in 1967.

The top diplomats, in a statement following their meeting at the Saudi Mission to the UN in New York late Sunday, said the Israeli withdrawal would pave way for creation of the independent Palestinian State with East Jerusalem as its capital, in line with the Arab peace initiative and relevant UN resolutions.

They supported all Arab and international initiatives to solve the Palestinian question, and to hold an international peace conference to end the Israeli occupation and pave way for creation of the Palestinian state.

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The foreign ministers, including Kuwait’s First Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Sabah Khaled Al-Hamad Al-Sabah, reiterated that Jewish settlements, which were illegally built on occupied Arab territories, were a stumbling block on the path towards achieving just and lasting peace.

They meanwhile welcomed the UN Security Council’s statement which reaffirmed the Arabic identity of the Syrian Golan Heights, occupied by Israel. (T/R07/R01)

Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA)