Jordanian Minister of State for Media Affairs, Jumana Ghunaimat, condemned the Israeli Government’s new National Parks Bill, which will enable illegal settlement ‘penetration’ in East Jerusalem.

Israel’s amendments to the National Parks, Nature Reserves and Memorial Sites Law will allow settlements to reach the south and west walls of Al-Aqsa Mosque.

In a statement on Wednesday, November 21, 2018, Ghunaimat affirmed Jordan’s rejection of all Israeli measures and policies aimed at imposing new settlements on lands occupied in 1967, calling the international community to hold responsibility and stop these illegal and practices.

According to Israeli NGO “Ir Amim” (or City of Nations), “promotion of this amendment lays bare the political drivers behind national park planning and development in East Jerusalem, an integral part of a larger settlement enterprise”.

“National parks have become an effective tool for the state, working in cooperation with private bodies, to transfer administration and development powers for public, touristic, archaeological and educational projects into the hands of private right-wing organisations; in so doing, enabling the Israelisation of the Old City and surrounding band of Palestinian neighbourhoods.”



“Ir Amim” is a daily monitor to the situation in East Jerusalem, exposing key developments and in-depth analysis in its monthly reports.