The foreign ministers of Turkey and 18 other countries on Friday strongly condemned Colombia’s inauguration of its embassy in Al-Quds, denouncing the move as a violation of international law and a challenge to the internationally recognized status of the occupied Palestinian city.
In a joint statement released by Turkey’s Foreign Ministry, the ministers expressed their “unequivocal rejection” of the decision.
They said the move violates relevant UN Security Council resolutions and undermines international efforts to achieve a just and lasting peace based on a two-state solution.
The statement was issued by the foreign ministers of Turkey, Algeria, Djibouti, Egypt, Indonesia, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Malaysia, Oman, Pakistan, Palestine, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen.
The ministers reaffirmed that any measure or decision intended to alter the legal or historical status of occupied Al-Quds, or to recognize the city as Israel’s capital, “is null and void and has no legal effect.”
They cited UN Security Council Resolutions 476 and 478, both adopted in 1980, which reject attempts to change Al-Quds’s character or status and call on states to withdraw their diplomatic missions from the city.
The statement emphasized that Al-Quds is part of the Palestinian territory occupied in 1967, rejecting measures that seek to legitimize Israeli regime’s control over the occupied city.
The ministers called on the Colombian government to reconsider and reverse its decision, uphold its obligations under international law, and refrain from measures that prejudice the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people.
Separately, Iran’s Foreign Ministry also strongly condemned Colombia’s decision to open an embassy in occupied Al-Quds, describing the move as contrary to the UN Charter and fundamental principles of international law, and as a step that supports occupation and violates the Palestinian people’s right to self-determination; Jordan, Saudi Arabia and Algeria also issued separate condemnations, while the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) had earlier denounced the planned move as an illegal step and a reversal of Colombia’s longstanding support for Palestinian rights.