DOHA, March 18 (NNN-KUNA): Qatar condemned Wednesday the Israeli escalation in the occupied Palestinian territories, the Israeli forces’ incursion into the courtyards of Al-Aqsa Mosque and clashes with worshippers.

Minister of State for Cabinet Affairs Sheikh Nasser bin Mohammad Al-Thani, in a statement after a cabinet meeting, said the government condemned the Israeli “hostile” practices via the building of settlements, annexing the Palestinian lands by force and violating the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people.

The government, he said, called on the international community to live up to its responsibilities and exercise pressure on Israel to halt its hostile acts against the Palestinian people.

The international community should also provide protection for the Palestinian people to enable them to exercise their legitimate rights through the establishment of their independent state with Jerusalem as its capital, said Sheikh Nasser.

-NNN-KUNA

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