Amman, March 29 (Petra) -- Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign and Expatriate Affairs Ayman Safadi received a phone call on Sunday from Spanish Minister of Foreign Affairs, European Union and Cooperation José Manuel Albares and met with the European Union Special Representative for the Middle East Peace Process, Christophe Bigot.

Safadi and Albares discussed efforts to stop the dangerous escalation in the region and to use diplomacy to end the war with Iran and restore security and stability based on principles that ensure a safe future while respecting international law and good neighborliness.

During the call, Safadi reiterated Jordan’s condemnation of Iranian attacks on Jordan and on sister countries. Albares affirmed his country’s solidarity with Jordan.

Safadi also discussed with Albares and the European envoy the situation in Lebanon, stressing the need to stop Israeli aggression against Lebanon and to support the Lebanese government’s efforts to assert its sovereignty over all its territory, activate its institutions, and ensure that weapons remain exclusively in the hands of the state.

He stressed the necessity of adhering to the ceasefire agreement in Gaza, the full implementation of a plan attributed to US President Donald Trump, and the entry of sufficient and sustainable humanitarian aid to end the ongoing humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza.

Safadi emphasized the need to intensify efforts to stop Israeli illegal measures in the occupied West Bank, which undermine the two-state solution and efforts to achieve a just and lasting peace in the region.

He warned against Israel’s continued restrictions on the freedom of worship for Muslims and Christians in the occupied Palestinian territories and its measures that violate the historical and legal status quo of Islamic and Christian holy sites in Jerusalem.

Safadi reiterated Jordan’s condemnation of Israel’s prevention of Muslims from performing their religious rituals at Al-Aqsa Mosque/Al-Haram Al-Sharif, which in its entirety is a place of worship exclusively for Muslims. He noted that the Jerusalem Endowments and Al-Aqsa Mosque Affairs Department, affiliated with the Jordanian Ministry of Awqaf and Islamic Affairs, is the sole authority authorized to administer its affairs.

He also condemned Israel’s prevention of the Latin Patriarch in Jerusalem from reaching the Church of the Holy Sepulchre and holding Palm Sunday Mass, in violation of its legal obligations as the occupying power and in breach of the freedom of access to places of worship.

Safadi stressed the need to intensify efforts to compel Israel to respect the right of Muslims and Christians to worship at their holy sites in Jerusalem and the rest of the occupied Palestinian territories and to respect the historical and legal status quo in the holy sites.

He praised Spain’s positions supporting the Palestinian people’s right to establish an independent and sovereign state based on the two-state solution and in accordance with international legitimacy resolutions as the only path to achieving a just and lasting peace.

Safadi also highlighted the importance of the European Union’s position in support of the two-state solution and its role in supporting the Palestinian people and the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA).

//Petra// AF