Jeddah, February 3 (Petra)- Minister of Foreign and Expatriates Affairs, Ayman Safadi, said Jordan adheres to international legitimacy and demands a just peace based on a two-state solution.
Safadi affirmed the solution, which guarantees the establishment of an independent Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital, is the only way to resolve the conflict.
Safadi made the comment during an open-ended executive committee meeting held by the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) in Jeddah to discuss its position on the American peace plan.
He highlighted the Kingdom’s principles regarding the Palestinian cause and the conditions for achieving peace, calling on Arab countries’ peoples to “believe in and protect peace so that it will be lasting.”
The minister said the Kingdom stands with Palestinians in their endeavor to restore their legitimate rights, pointing to the uninterrupted efforts of His Majesty King Abdullah II in this regard.
He reiterated the Kingdom’s rejection and condemnation of any Israeli measures aimed at imposing new facts, especially settlements construction and expansion and annexation of occupied Palestinian lands, and the tampering of the historical and legal status quo in Arab Islamic and Christian holy sites in Jerusalem and its Arab Islamic and Christian identity.
Jerusalem is a red line to the custodian of its Islamic and Christian sanctities King Abdullah, Safadi stated, adding that preserving the Arab, Islamic and Christian identity of the holy sites is a responsibility that His Majesty devotes all the Kingdom’s capabilities to.
He pointed out that the Hashemite custodianship protects the rights of Muslims and Christians in holy places.
Safadi stressed that the 144-dunum al-Aqsa Mosque/Haram al-Sharif is an exclusive place of worship for Muslims, a fact underscored by international legitimacy and history.
He underlined the rejection of a “spatial or temporal division of the Al-Aqsa Mosque and any attempt to change the Arab-Islamic identity of the mosque.”
Safadi also said the issue of refugees should be resolved on the basis of international legitimacy resolutions and the Arab Peace Initiative and in a way that guarantees the right to return and compensation.
He stressed the need to continue providing financial and political support to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) until the refugee issue is resolved within a comprehensive peace framework that ends the occupation.