PALESTINIANS AND ISRAELIS AGREE TO CURB “FURTHER VIOLENCE”

Sun 26 February 2023:

In a meeting with Palestinian leaders in Jordan, Israel agreed to halt the approval of illegal settlement outposts in the occupied West Bank for six months. Both sides also agreed to deescalate the ongoing violence.

Following their meeting on Sunday in the Red Sea resort of Aqaba, Israeli and Palestinian officials released a joint statement in which they pledged to cooperate to stop “further violence” and “reaffirmed the necessity of committing to de-escalation on the ground.”

Israel was committed to stop “discussing setting up any new settlement units for four months and stop approving any new settlements for six months”, a joint statement said.

After “thorough and frank discussions”, the Palestinian and Israeli sides “reaffirmed the need to commit to de-escalation on the ground and to prevent further violence”, it said.

The joint statement came at the end of a meeting also attended by United States, Egyptian and Jordanian officials amid growing concerns over an escalation of violence in the run-up to the holy Muslim month of Ramadan that begins in late March.

Israel and the Palestinian Authority stressed “joint readiness and commitment to work immediately to stop unilateral measures” for three to six months, according to the statement.