PLF Pakistan

Egypt has called on Israel to freeze settlement activities in occupied East Jerusalem (al-Quds) before the resumption of any peace talks with the Palestinians.

Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Abul-Gheit told reporters in Stockholm that the Arab world expects Israel to include Jerusalem in a moratorium on settlements.

“Jerusalem is Arab and it will continue to be so,” said the foreign minister.

“We have to receive an indication that Israel is ready to apply a very strict moratorium for an extended period of time on not building settlements as to cope with the idea of having a time frame for the negotiations,” said Abul-Gheit.

The remarks were made while the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu refuses any freeze on settlement activity in Jerusalem saying the city “is not a settlement. It is the sovereign capital of Israel, and we accept no limitations on our sovereignty.”

The status of Jerusalem has been among the thorny issues in the stalled peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians, with the Israelis claiming the city as their ‘eternal, undivided capital’ — a position not recognized by the international community.