UN committed to two-state solution on 'pre-1967 lines'

By Michael Hernandez

WASHINGTON (AA) - UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres steadfastly maintained the international consensus on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict Tuesday after U.S. President Donald Trump rolled out his highly controversial plan.

"The position of the United Nations on the two-state solution has been defined, throughout the years, by relevant Security Council and General Assembly resolutions by which the Secretariat is bound," Guterres spokesman Stephane Dujarric said in a statement.

"The United Nations remains committed to supporting Palestinians and Israelis to resolve the conflict on the basis of United Nations resolutions, international law and bilateral agreements and realizing the vision of two States – Israel and Palestine – living side by side in peace and security within recognized borders, on the basis of the pre-1967 lines," he added.

The comments are at odds with Trump's plan, which overwhelmingly eschews the international consensus on the conflict, denying Palestinian refugees their right of return and greatly shrinking their borders within the West Bank while legitimizing Israeli settlements that are illegal under international law.

The plan grants Israel nearly all of its demands while foregoing many key aspects sought by the Palestinians.

Among those, Jerusalem will remain Israel's "undivided capital," Trump said while rolling out the plan.

Thousands rallied in Gaza, the West Bank and Jordan against Trump's proposal, chanting against the U.S. plan, which has been widely rejected by the Palestinians.

Trump said his proposal also requires the "firm rejection of terrorism" from Palestinians and includes the recognition of a "contiguous" Palestinian state that would "double the Palestinian territory" over time once certain conditions are met. Israel would be granted sovereignty over the whole of the Jordan Valley in the eastern swath of the occupied West Bank.

Trump released via Twitter a copy of his "conceptual map" for a two-state solution that included a greatly reduced Palestinian territory in the West Bank, which also included 15 "Israeli Enclave Communities" linked by Israeli access roads that cut through the envisioned Palestinian territory. That would recognize Israeli sovereignty over existing settlements, which are illegal under international law.

It further links the West Bank and the Gaza Strip by tunnel, but Gaza is not permitted port access. That is only allowed at the Israeli ports of Ashdod and Haifa.

It does apportion two bubble-like areas of the arid Negev desert to the future state of Palestine, linked to the Gaza Strip with small territorial corridors, after Trump said his plan would double the amount of territory claimed by Palestinians.