Arab League condemns closure of Palestinian Beit El-Shark

The Arab League and Egypt expressed their deep anxiety toward the decision taken by the Israeli government to close Beit El-Shark (the Orient House) and the Palestinian offices in Jerusalem.

The Arab League directed a written message to France, Britain and the US, urging them to make an immediate intervention to stop Israel from implementing its decision, adding that this decision absolutely contradicts the peace process, the Oslo and Madrid agreements.

The message expressed the Arab states' anxiety toward the situation in Jerusalem at the Israeli authorities, whether for the Beit El-Shark or toward the increased Israeli destruction of Palestinian houses in Jerusalem as well as the withdrawal of identity cards of Palestinians residing in East Jerusalem and the expansion and establishment of Israeli settlements in Jerusalem and other places in the Palestinian lands.

The Arab League said, "Any unstudied action could stir a serious tension" and that the AL hopes that "Beit El-Shark goes on in its work like it used to."