UN Chief Calls for Jerusalem to be Divided

United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon termed the Israeli control of the territories obtained in the 1967 war “morally and politically unsustainable,” and called for the division of Jerusalem. “A way must be found for Jerusalem to emerge as a capital of two states, Israel and Palestine, with arrangements for holy sites acceptable for all,” Ban said. He added that the “target dates for reaching an Israeli-Palestinian agreement on permanent status issues and completing the Palestinian Authority’s two-year state-building program are fast-approaching.” Ban’s comments were delivered in a message by his assistant for political affairs Oscar Fernandez-Traranco in a meeting held in Uruguay convened by the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People. The UN chief also criticized Israeli construction in the territories and urged Israel to ease its blockade of Gaza and to allow Palestinian security forces to expand their role in the West Bank.