Cairo: The Arab League on Sunday urged the international community, with a particular focus on the United Kingdom, to actively participate in relief efforts and the reconstruction of the Gaza Strip. This appeal coincides with the anniversary of the Balfour Declaration, a historical event that significantly impacted the Palestinian people.
According to Kuwait News Agency, the Arab League issued a statement to mark the 108th anniversary of the Balfour Declaration, dated November 2, 1917. The League's statement emphasized the need for influential countries to back Palestine's campaign for full United Nations membership and to support efforts toward a two-state solution. The proposed solution involves ending the Israeli occupation by establishing an independent Palestinian state based on the June 4, 1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital.
The statement highlighted that the promise made by then-British Foreign Secretary Arthur Balfour to create a national home for Jews in Palestine resulted in severe consequences for the Palestinian population.
While acknowledging the United Kingdom's decision last September to recognize the State of Palestine, the Arab League viewed it as a corrective measure toward the "historical injustice" of the Balfour Declaration. The League called upon the UK to exert pressure on Israeli authorities to cease violations and crimes and to refrain from supporting the expansionist settlement regime, in compliance with international law.
The Arab League's statement also pointed out that this year's anniversary aligns with what it described as a "genocidal war" conducted by Israeli forces in the Gaza Strip over the past two years. This conflict has led to significant casualties, nearly total destruction of the area, and the displacement of approximately two million Palestinians.
Additionally, the statement condemned ongoing Israeli violations in the occupied West Bank, which include extrajudicial killings, arrests, home demolitions, settler violence, settlement expansion, and continued efforts to Judaize Jerusalem and Al-Aqsa Mosque.