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Ammon News - AMMONNEWS - Minister of Foreign and Expatriates Affairs Ayman Safadi on Wednesday called on the European Union (EU) to recognize East Jerusalem as the capital of a Palestinian state whose establishment on national Palestinian soil is prerequisite to comprehensive peace in the region.

In a meeting with European Union ambassadors to Jordan, the minister urged Europe to act immediately to support the establishment of an independent international commission to investigate the Israeli massacre against unarmed civilians in the Gaza Strip and ensure that international law is applied.

Safadi said that Israel's continued crimes without a deterrent international response would trigger a new cycle of violence that will have implications on regional and international stability.

The minister warned that occupation fuels despair, weakens moderate voices of moderation and strengthens extremism that lives on the despair and frustration.

He called on the international community to shoulder its moral and legal responsibilities and protect the Palestinian people from the illegal Israeli occupation, which completely violates all international legitimacy resolutions and undermines the chances of achieving peace.

In this context, the minister warned of the consequences of unilateral Israeli practices aimed at imposing new facts on the ground and obliterating the Arab-Muslim-Christian identity of Jerusalem.

He said that Jerusalem, as affirmed by His Majesty King Abdullah II, the Custodian over Muslim and Christian holy sites in Jerusalem, is the key to peace, which will be achieved only by fulfilling the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people, including its right to freedom and statehood.

Safadi pointed out that Jordan, with the direct guidance and follow-up of His Majesty King Abdullah II, will continue to devote all its resources to the protection of holy sites and the preservation of the Arab and Islamic identity of Jerusalem and to the achievement of a comprehensive and lasting peace that guarantees the right of all peoples of the region to live in peace and security.

The minister reiterated Jordan's condemnation of the U.S. decision to recognize Jerusalem as capital of Israel and said the decision violates international law and international legitimacy resolutions. He said the Kingdom will continue to work with the Palestinians and the international community to contain the ramifications of the decision.

On the eve of the 70th anniversary of the Nakba, the minister noted, a US embassy is opened in Jerusalem in violation of international law while Israel is sending its soldiers to Gaza to kill peaceful demonstrators who exercise their legitimate right to peacefully protest against the occupation; the greatest injustice in modern times.

Safadi commended the European Union countries for supporting the right of the Palestinian people to live in peace and dignity through resolving the conflict on the basis of the two-state solution.

He also underlined the European Union's refusal to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel or relocate their embassies to the holy city, which the occupation deprived from peace.

The minister called for an effective international action to curb Israeli practices and a horizon for progress towards peace, warning of the consequences of continued political deadlock.

He underscored the importance of the European Union's pressure on Israel to stop its unilateral actions in Jerusalem and stop the confiscation of Palestinian land and the construction and expansion of settlements and other measures that undermine the two-state solution.

Jordan would continue to work with the Arab brothers and the European Union and engage with the United States and all its partners in the international community in order to achieve a comprehensive and lasting peace based on the two-state solution and in accordance with international legitimacy resolutions and the Arab Peace Initiative, Safadi concluded.