Australia refuses to call east Jerusalem occupied
Australia has decided to remove the term "occupied" when referring to east Jerusalem, a move blasted by Palestinians as "toxic" and an ostacle to peace and welcomed by Israel.
The issue flared in the Senate this week with Attorney-General George Brandis issuing a statement to clarify Canberra's stance on the controversial question of the legality of settler homes.
"The description of areas which are the subject of negotiations in the course of the peace process by reference to historical events is unhelpful," he said Thursday.
"The description of east Jerusalem as 'occupied' east Jerusalem is a term freighted with pejorative implications which is neither appropriate nor useful.”
Israel seized the West Bank, including Arab east Jerusalem, in the Six Day War of 1967.
It later annexed east Jerusalem in a move that has never been recognised by the international community.
Israel unveiled plans for 3,200 settler homes Thursday in retaliation for the formation of a Palestinian unity government backed by Hamas and the international community.
Tenders for nearly 1,500 new settlement houses and plans to advance some 1,800 others were issued just 72 hours after the new Palestinian government was sworn in, ending seven years of rival administrations in the West Bank and Gaza.
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