UN chief ‘deeply alarmed’ by Israel granting city status to illegal settlement in occupied West Bank

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres is “deeply alarmed” by Israel’s decision to upgrade the illegal settlement of Givat Ze’ev to a city, his spokesperson said Thursday. “The Secretary-General is deeply alarmed that the Israeli authorities have granted the status of a city to Givat Ze’ev, an Israeli settlement in the occupied West Bank, that is just northwest of Jerusalem,” spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said during a news conference. Dujarric stressed that “this administrative designation does not alter Givat Ze’ev’s legal status under international law as part of the occupied Palestinian territory.” “The secretary-general reiterates that Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem and all related infrastructure, have no legal validity and are in flagrant violation of international law and […]