Saudi Arabia reiterated its absolute rejection of any measures aimed at the forced displacement of the Palestinian people, or any attempts to alter the geographical or demographic character of the occupied Palestinian territory. It also expressed its strong condemnation of the expansion of Israeli settlement activities and settler terrorism. This came during the participation of the Permanent Mission of Saudi Arabia to the United Nations and International Organizations in Geneva, as part of the 63rd session of the Human Rights Council that addressed the human rights situation in Palestine and other occupied Arab territories. Dr. Salem Al-Qahtani, Director General of the General Administration of Humanitarian Affairs at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said Saudi Arabia reaffirms that the only path to achieving a just, lasting, and comprehensive peace lies in the implementation of the two-state solution, supporting the inalienable right of the Palestinian people to self-determination, and the establishment of their independent, sovereign state based on the 1967 borders with East Jerusalem as its capital. Saudi Arabia strongly condemned the continuation of the Israeli attacks on the Gaza Strip, stressing the need of adhering to a ceasefire and ensuring full protection for civilians, he added. Al-Qahtani said Saudi Arabia values the important steps taken by a number of countries to recognize the State of Palestine, and the subsequent recent strengthening of accountability measures, including restrictions on trade with Israeli settlements. Marking one year since the adoption of the "New York Declaration," Riyadh reaffirmed the statement made by the co-chairs of the "Global Alliance for the Implementation of the Two-State Solution," stressing that Gaza and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, are a single Palestinian territorial unit, and that the occupation must end.
