Ramallah, MINA – Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammed Shtayyeh said the plan’s visit of US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo next week to the illegal Israeli settlements occupied in the West Bank would set a “dangerous precedent”.
Mike Pompeo will be the first US secretary of state to visit one of the settlements considered illegal by most of the international community.
Pompeo’s plan visit next week, Shtayyeh said, is a way to “legitimize settlements” and set “a dangerous precedent in violation of international law”.
He conveyed on Friday quoted by the Palestinian news agency, WAFA.
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The Axios news website reported that the top diplomat will land in Israel on Wednesday and be expected to meet Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other officials.
As quoted from Al Jazeera on Friday, the trip aims to discuss the policies of the Donald Trump administration in Israel.
Pompeo’s visit to Israel comes exactly one year after he said the US does not consider Jewish settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories illegal.
The statement put Washington at odds with a UN Security Council resolution.
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Pompeo is expected to visit the Psagot winery in the occupied West Bank, which has launched a label named after him in honor of his visit, Israeli media reported.
The winery failed to challenge Europe’s decision to label all products originating from illegal settlements in the occupied West Bank.
Meanwhile, the State Department has not confirmed Pompeo’s travel plans.
In a statement earlier this week, it only said that Pompeo would visit Israel and meet Netanyahu. (T/RE1)
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