PLO Executive Committee member Hanan Ashrawi on Wednesday accused Israel of exploiting the coronavirus pandemic to "annex Palestinian occupied territories."
According to a report in Israel National News, Ashrawi urged the international community to prevent Israel "from taking advantage of the global health and economic crises" to promote its plan.
"Israel is taking advantage of the spread of the coronavirus to accelerate the process of annexing territories in the West Bank and provide protection for the armed extremist settlers to continue their 'terror' against the 'helpless' Palestinian people," Ashrawi said in a statement.
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The statement was released following remarks by Defense Minister Naftali Bennett saying that he plans to promote paving a road between the E1 area and Jerusalem, which he called the "road of sovereignty" project.
The E1 area, which stretches across 7 kilometers (4 miles) just east of the Jerusalem municipal boundary, between Jerusalem and the suburb of Maaleh Adumim, has been the focus of conservancy as the Palestinians claim it is essential for their future state.
"The activity of the settlers against the Palestinians has escalated following the coronavirus outbreak in Bethlehem, which required large-scale preventive measures, while at the same time, the settlers uprooted 1,200 trees in the Bethlehem area, attempted to kidnap two minors in the village of Turmus Ayya, attacked Palestinians in Huwwara and Burin, and broke into the Al-Tira neighborhood of Ramallah," Ashrawi said, according to the report.
The Palestinian Authority declared a state of emergency last week over the growing number of COVID-19 cases in its territories.
