European countries warn against demolishing West Bank hamlet

JERUSALEM – Major European countries have issued a rare joint statement warning Israel against its planned demolition of a Bedouin encampment in the West Bank.

France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom said on Monday its strategic location is important to maintain “contiguity of a future Palestinian state.”

“The consequences a demolition and displacement would have on the residents … as well as on the prospects of the two-state solution would be very serious,” their statement said.

Israel says Khan al-Ahmar, an encampment of corrugated shacks east of Jerusalem, was illegally built and has offered to resettle residents 12 kilometres (7 miles) away. Critics say its removal is meant to make room for an Israeli settlement.

Israel’s Supreme Court rejected an appeal last week and the hamlet is expected to be demolished soon.