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The Palestinian PM condemned the Israeli flag march, calling it senseless. Photo/NBC News
JERUSALEM – Prime Minister (PM) Palestine condemn the flag march Israel calling it a ridiculous and provocative attempt to impose false facts on the ground.
In a statement, Mohammed Shtayyeh said the Israeli flag march, in which tens of thousands of Israeli settlers marched through the Muslim Quarter of the Old City, did not give legitimacy to the Israeli occupation through its absurd policies and repressive practices.
“It cannot change the features of the Holy City with its Palestinian inhabitants in Jerusalem, its Islamic and Christian sanctity, and its landmarks that resist invaders who come there,” he said as quoted by New Arab, Friday (19/5/2023).
The march, held on Thursday afternoon local time, is Israel’s annual far-right parade celebrating the 1967 conquest of East Jerusalem and its subsequent occupation, which the Israeli government calls the “reunification” of Jerusalem.
Marches of the Israeli flag are often accompanied by brutal violence against Palestinian civilians.
Between 100,000 and 200,000 young Orthodox Jews are expected to take part in the parade.
Such acts of provocation threaten to undermine a ceasefire agreement between Palestinian Islamic Jihad and Israel, amid fears of violent clashes in Jerusalem.
The Israeli army has beefed up its Iron Dome defense system due to fears of rocket fire from the Gaza Strip in response to the march.
The White House urged Israelis and Palestinians to remain calm and exercise restraint and avoid any action or rhetoric around the march that could cause tensions to escalate.
(ian)
