Wednesday, 25 February 2026: The Colonization & Wall Resistance Commission stated in an official press release issued today that the decision to expand the jurisdiction of U.S. Embassy consular services to include the colony of Efrat, established on the lands of Palestinian citizens south of Bethlehem, constitutes a clear violation of international law and an evident bias in favor of the occupying authorities. The Commission noted that this step represents institutional engagement with an unlawful colonial settlement entity established in occupied territory in contravention of peremptory norms of international humanitarian law.
Minister Mu’ayyad Sha’ban, head of the Commission, stated that all Israeli colonies in the West Bank are illegal under the Fourth Geneva Convention, which prohibits an occupying power from transferring parts of its civilian population into the territory it occupies. He further stressed that United Nations resolutions and advisory opinions of the International Court of Justice affirm the illegality of colonies and the obligation not to recognize any legal consequences arising from them.
Mr. Sha’ban also explained that the extending of consular services to a colony built on confiscated Palestinian land constitutes a breach of the the principle of non-recognition of unlawful situations, which is a well-established rule of international law that requires states to refrain from any action that grants official or practical legitimacy to the results of serious violations. He added that this step contradicts declared commitments to support the two-state solution, as it effectively entrenches a colonial reality that undermines the possibility of establishing an independent and sovereign Palestinian state.
He also maintained that these measures cannot be separated from a boarder context that aims to redefine occupied territory as an administrative domain subject to diplomatic normalization. This, in turn, transforms effective control into a form of implicit recognition and grants colonies additional political cover.
Accordingly, Mr. Sha’ban called on the U.S. administration to reverse the decision, adhere to the requirements of international law, and refrain from taking steps that would undermine the established rights of the Palestinian people to their land and property. He also urged the international community to undertake its legal and moral responsibilities in confronting the colonial enterprise and to reject any measures that contribute to its legitimization or treat it as a normal reality.
He affirmed that the Palestinian people will continue to protect their land and rights through all lawful and diplomatic means possible, and that any attempt to give an administrative or consular character to colonies will not alter their fundamental nature as an ongoing violation of international law and an infringement upon the Palestinian people’s inalienable right to land and sovereignty.