JEDDAH: Kuwait reiterated yesterday its firm stand in favor of the Palestinian cause, which continue to top the country's political priorities, a Kuwaiti senior official affirmed. Through its 2018-2019 non-permanent membership of the United Nation Security Council (UNSC), Kuwait has constantly emphasized the need to achieve the legitimate Palestinian right through ending the Israeli occupation, Kuwaiti Assistant Foreign Minister for International Organizations Nasser Al-Hayyen said.


Hayyen made his remarks while addressing participants of the extraordinary meeting of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation's executive committee at the level of foreign ministers on the recent escalation of Israeli violations in the occupied city of Jerusalem. Kuwait has also stressed the importance of attaining peace in the Middle East based on the Arab peace initiative, and implementing all international agreements on the two-state solution, which includes establishing an independent Palestinian state based on the 1967 borders with East Jerusalem as its capital, he added.


The Israeli authorities continue to violate Muslim sanctities in the occupied Palestinian territories, and recently provoked the sentiments of over one billion and half of Muslims around the world with opening a new tunnel, named "Pilgrimage Road", which runs from underneath the village of Silwan in east Jerusalem, leading eventually to the Buraq Wall in the Old City, said Hayyen. Furthermore, the Kuwaiti official condemned the Israeli recent efforts to change the historical facts and identity of city of Jerusalem and the holy Aqsa Mosque, calling such actions as a flagrant challenge and disregard to all international resolutions and regional and international initiatives.


"We all realize the huge humanitarian and psychological suffering endured by the Palestinian people," he said, noting the international community has recently celebrated the 70th anniversary of Geneva Conventions of 1949 in light of continued hostile Israeli aggression against unarmed Palestinian civilians. Al-Hayyen urged OIC's member-states to boost their cooperation in favor of the Palestinian cause and the city of Jerusalem, and bolster their efforts in order to back the legitimate Palestinian rights. - KUNA