Several Arab and Muslim foreign ministers issued a joint statement condemning Israel’s recent decision to resume land registration procedures in Area C of Judea and Samaria, calling the move a “grave escalation” and accusing Jerusalem of attempting to alter realities on the ground.

In the statement, released by the foreign ministers of the United Arab Emirates, Turkey, Egypt, Jordan, Indonesia, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar, the governments “strongly condemn the decision issued by the Israeli [government] to designate lands in the occupied West Bank as so-called ‘state land’ and approve procedures for the registration and settlement of land ownership.”

The ministers claimed the step “constitutes a grave escalation aimed at accelerating illegal settlement activity” and argued it would “undermine the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people.”