Eighteen countries, including Pakistan, on Friday strongly condemned Colombia’s opening of an embassy in Jerusalem. They said any move to recognise the city as Israel’s capital has no legal effect.
Colombia officially opened the embassy on Wednesday, joining a small group of countries, including the United States, that have backed Israeli sovereignty over the contested city through this symbolic step.
Most countries keep their embassies in Tel Aviv, arguing that Jerusalem’s status should be settled in a final resolution of the Israeli Palestinian conflict.
In a joint statement shared by the Foreign Office, the foreign ministers of Pakistan, Algeria, Djibouti, Egypt, Indonesia, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Malaysia, Oman, Palestine, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Syria, Sudan and Türkiye said they “strongly condemn and express their unequivocal rejection” of the inauguration.
They said the step contravenes relevant UN Security Council resolutions and undermines international efforts to achieve a just and lasting peace based on the two state solution.
The ministers reaffirmed that any measure intended to change the legal or historical status of occupied Jerusalem, or to recognise it as Israel’s capital, is null and void and has no legal effect. They said this position is consistent with Security Council and General Assembly resolutions, particularly Resolutions 476 and 478, both adopted in 1980.
According to the statement, these resolutions reject attempts to change Jerusalem’s character or status and call on states to withdraw their diplomatic missions from the city, which is part of the Palestinian territory occupied in 1967.
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. These include the right to an independent and sovereign Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital. The statement did not announce sanctions or other measures against Colombia.
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