AMMAN
A Jordanian minister on Saturday called on Arab governments to pile pressures on Australia to abolish a recent decision to stop using the term "occupied" when referring to East Jerusalem.
"The Australian decision is negative and unacceptable as it contradicts with international agreements that recognize East Jerusalem as an occupied territory," Endowments Minister Hayel Ben Dawoud told Anadolu Agency.
A statement released by Australia's attorney general a few days ago said that Australia will no longer refer to East Jerusalem as an occupied territory, which marks a radical change in Australian policy on the occupied territory since 1967.
''The description of East Jerusalem as 'Occupied East Jerusalem' is a term freighted with pejorative implications, which is neither appropriate nor useful,'' George Brandis said in a statement cited by the Australian newspaper The Sydney Morning Herald.
East Jerusalem has been captured by Israel during the 1967 Middle East war.
International law considers the West Bank and East Jerusalem occupied territories and views as illegal all Jewish settlement building on the land.
The Jordanian minister said the Australian decision will reflect negatively on Australia's relations with Arab and Islamic countries, going on to call on the Australian government to reconsider its decision.
By Ahmed Fahim
www.aa.com.tr/en
