RAMALLAH, West Bank (AP) — U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon (bahn kee-moon) says Israeli settlement building anywhere on occupied land is illegal and must be stopped.
His comments came after he got a closer look at some of the Israeli enclaves scattered across Palestinian-claimed territories.
The Palestinian prime minister took Ban to a hilltop observation post on the outskirts of the Palestinian city of Ramallah for a view of a large Israeli settlement and Israel's separation barrier.
The geography lesson came a day after Ban, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton and other major Mideast mediators met in Moscow to try to find a way to restart Israeli-Palestinian peace talks. The mediators urged Israel to halt all settlement construction, which has emerged as a key obstacle to renewing talks.
Israel has agreed to curb settlement construction in the West Bank, but not in east Jerusalem, claiming the entire city as Israel's eternal capital.
Today, Ban rejected Israel's distinction between east Jerusalem and the West Bank, noting that both are occupied lands.
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<<CUT …114 (03/20/10)>> 00:16 "against international law"
United Nations chief Ban Ki-moon
U.N. chief Ban Ki-moon says Israel has broken international law with its plan to go on building settlements in certain areas.
<<APPHOTO TTW112 (03/20/10)>>
: UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, left, stands with Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad, during a tour of the West Bank city of Ramallah, Saturday, March 20, 2010. Israeli settlement building anywhere on occupied land is illegal and must be stopped, U.N. chief Ban Ki-moon said Saturday, after getting a closer look at some of the Israeli enclaves scattered across Palestinian-claimed territories. During a high-profile West Bank visit, Ban was escorted to an observation point by Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad.
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