UAE chairs emergency Arab League meeting on Israeli settlement expansion

CAIRO, 11th February, 2026 (WAM) – The United Arab Emirates today chaired the emergency meeting of the Council of the League of Arab States at the level of Permanent Representatives, held at the General Secretariat headquarters in Cairo, to discuss Arab and international efforts in response to the recent Israeli decisions to expand settlements in the Palestinian territories.

In his speech during the opening session, Hamad Obaid Al Zaabi, UAE Ambassador to the Arab Republic of Egypt and Permanent Representative to the League of Arab States, affirmed the UAE’s condemnation of the illegal Israeli measures aimed at imposing illegitimate sovereignty, consolidating settlement activity, and continuing expansionist policies pursued by Israel, which fuel violence and conflict in the region.

Al Zaabi reiterated the firm rejection of any infringement on the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people, calling for an immediate halt to settlement activities that threaten stability and undermine prospects for peace and coexistence.

He also urged the international community, the United Nations, and the Security Council to assume their responsibilities and put an end to unlawful practices that violate international law.

For his part, Ambassador Dr. Fayez Mustafa, Assistant Secretary-General and Head of the Palestine and Occupied Arab Territories Sector at the Arab League, stated that the recent decisions of the occupying government represent a dangerous escalation in settlement policies and the de facto annexation of parts of the West Bank, in clear violation of international law and international legitimacy resolutions. He warned of their repercussions on prospects for peace and stability in the region.

Meanwhile, Ambassador Muhannad Al Aklouk, Permanent Representative of the State of Palestine to the League of Arab States, called on member states and the international community to take effective political, economic, legal, and diplomatic measures to halt plans to annex the occupied West Bank. He affirmed that the State of Palestine considers these decisions null and void and called for Arab and international support to enable it to exercise full sovereignty over its territories.