UNITED NATIONS, September 11. The UN Security Council has condemned the Israeli strikes on the capital of Qatar and reaffirmed its support to the Arab country’s sovereignty in a statement, published by the UK Permanent Mission to the UN on the X social network.

"The members of the Security Council expressed their condemnation of the recent strikes in Doha, the territory of a key mediator, on 9 September," the statement reads. "They underlined their support for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Qatar in line with the principles of the UN Charter."

In the document, UN Security Council members also underscored "the importance of de-escalation" and expressed their solidarity with Qatar.

"Council members recalled their support for the vital role that Qatar continues to play in mediation efforts in the region, and alongside Egypt and the United States," the statement says.

Apart from that, the UN Security Council underscored that releasing the hostages held in the Gaza Strip and ending the hostilities in the enclave remains a "top priority."

On September 9, a series of explosions shook the capital of Qatar. Shortly afterwards, Israel said that its air military, with the support of the Israeli Air Force and the General Security Service, had attacked Hamas negotiators. Majed Mohammed Al-Ansari, advisor to the prime minister and the official spokesperson of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Qatar, confirmed that Israel is responsible for the attack. According to the emirate’s Interior Ministry, a security officer was killed in the attack and several others were wounded. In turn, Hamas refuted media reports about the death of members of its negotiating team, confirming, however, that the attack killed six people, including the son of al-Hayya and a Qatari security officer.

TEL AVIV, September 12. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has approved plans to build thousands of housing units for settlers in the E-1 zone of the West Bank while declaring that Israel considers this land its own and will not allow the creation of a separate Palestinian state.

The statement was made during a ceremony in the city of Maale Adumim, located in the West Bank, a few kilometers from Jerusalem and disseminated by the prime minister's office.

"The city of Maale Adumim will double in size. Within five years, 70,000 people will live here. These are monumental changes," he stated.

Netanyahu recalled that he had previously promised to approve new construction in this area and that this promise is now being fulfilled. "There is another promise we will keep. We said: there will be no Palestinian state, and indeed, there will not be! This land belongs to us. We will safeguard our heritage, our land and our security," the Israeli prime minister asserted.
About settlement plans

According to the human rights organization Shalom Akhshav (The World is Now), Israel has approved plans for the construction of 3,400 housing units for settlers in the E-1 area near the city of Maale Adumim to the east of Jerusalem. Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, the leader of the far-right Religious Zionism party, said on August 8 that Israel now aims to "erase the Palestinian state." The politician, who concurrently oversees settlement activities in the West Bank of the Jordan River in the Israeli Defense Ministry, promised to restore several Jewish settlements withdrawn from there. On August 14, he said the project to expand the Maale Adumim settlement complex and build new housing in the E-1 zone will be resumed.

In 2016, the UN Security Council passed a resolution demanding an end to Israeli settlement activities, but Israel refused to comply.