SA summons Israeli ambassador
2012-12-06 14:37
Pretoria – The government has summoned Israel's ambassador
in protest against his government's decision to build 3 000 new settlement
homes on the West Bank, a senior diplomat said on Thursday.
"We felt we had to do this to show how concerned we are
about this," said deputy minister of international relations Ebrahim
Ebrahim.
"It is in line with similar action taken in Britain,
France and Germany. Our ambassador in Israel will convey the same message to
the government there."
Two-state solution
Israel has faced a storm of criticism over the plans, which
critics say will isolate East Jerusalem and threaten the territorial contiguity
of a future Palestine state.
The government has warned further settlement
building in the West Bank will "seriously undermine the two-state solution".
South Africa also expressed its concern about Israel's plan
to "withhold $100m of Palestinian tax revenue".
"These punitive measures will have severe consequences
for the Palestinian population as a whole."
Pretoria also expressed growing frustration about the
moribund status of the Middle East peace process.
