JERUSALEM: After holding the first EU-Israel Association Council meeting in ten years with the intention of bolstering ties, the EU issued a call for action to Israel to halt settlement construction in the West Bank and maintain the status quo on Temple Mount urged to keep

The European Union urged Israel to stop evictions, demolition, forced transfers and the ongoing settlement expansion, which has recently reached record highs.

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It specifically urged Israel to refrain from ousting Palestinians from illegal pastoral villages in the Masafar Yatta area of ​​the South Hebron Hills and to refrain from building in the unfinished E1 neighborhood of Maleh Adumim settlement.

The European Union expressed support for a status quo arrangement, whereby believers of all faiths can visit the site, but only Muslims are allowed to pray in relation to the Temple Mount, also known to Muslims as al-Haram al-Sharif. Is known.

The meeting was praised by both the European Union and Israel as an important step in improving relations between the two powerful trading partners.

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The council has had annual meetings since its inception in 2000, but after 2012, the meetings were canceled due to strained relations under the direction of former Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

It is considered a diplomatic victory for Prime Minister Yair Lapid, who took office only in July, that the annual gathering has resumed. He spoke virtually to the Brussels Council from Jerusalem, relying on Israel's intelligence minister, Elazar Stern, to personally represent Israel.

Despite all the positive comments about the Council, the European Union also used it as a forum to express its stance on the Israel-Palestinian conflict.

It reaffirmed its support for a two-state solution on the lines of pre-1967 in the document, with East Jerusalem serving as the final capital of a Palestinian state. Additionally, it reaffirmed its adherence to United Nations Security Council Resolution 2334 from 2016, which condemned Israel's settlement activity and sought to withdraw its pre-1967 borders.

Although not all statements were negative, it condemned Hamas' indiscriminate rocket fire against Israel and declared its commitment to Israel's security.

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“The EU reaffirms its fundamental commitment to ensuring Israel's security in the light of regional threats. The EU strongly condemns the recent terrorist attacks in Israel as well as all forms of terrorism and still condemns both these evils. Dedicated to preventing and combating." ,