GENEVA, July 23 (Xinhua) -- The Swiss government on Thursday called on Israel to stop construction of Jewish settlements in occupied Palestinian territories.
In a statement, the Swiss Foreign Ministry said it "is deeply concerned about the destruction of Palestinian houses in East Jerusalem near the old town and the planned eviction of Palestinian families."
East Jerusalem is an integral part of the Palestinian territories and under international humanitarian law Israel must protect the local civilian population, the statement said.
"There is no military necessity that could justify the destruction of these houses or the evictions of Palestinian families," it added.
The Foreign Ministry also said the settlement policy was not compatible with efforts to find a lasting global solution to the conflict between Israel and Palestinians.
Switzerland's appeal is in line with similar statements by United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, the European Union and Russia, according to the official Swissinfo.ch news website.
The United States and France summoned the Israeli ambassadors to Washington and Paris, respectively, over the issue of the Jewish settlement, in the past few days, the website reported.
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