The Egyptian foreign ministry on Wednesday condemned the Knesset’s approval of the so-called unified Jerusalem law in its first reading describing it as a violation of international resolutions.
This came in remarks made by spokesman for the ministry Ahmed Abu Zeid and aired by the official Egyptian news agency.
The news agency quoted Abu Zeid as saying that “Jerusalem is under occupation and therefore any step changing its status quo is illegal.”
He also affirmed that such Israeli legislation would be another obstacle to the future of the peace process and the efforts to find a just settlement for the Palestinian question.
The spokesman underlined that Jerusalem is one of the final status issues that must be determined through talks between the concerned parties.
The Knesset Israel’s parliament approved a bill in its first reading that makes it more difficult to divide Occupied Jerusalem between Palestinians and Israelis.
The bill passed early on Tuesday the first round of voting at the Knesset and stipulates that two-thirds support is needed in the Israeli parliament before Israel can relinquish control over any portion of the holy city to a foreign entity according to Israeli media.
The bill is widely seen as intended to make it more difficult to give up part of Jerusalem to the Palestinian Authority which wants the city’s eastern half to be the capital of an independent Palestinian state.
The bill backed by Israel’s ruling right-wing coalition was passed with 64 Knesset members voting in favor and 52 against according to the Haaretz newspaper.
