UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has renewed calls for an end to the blockade of the Gaza Strip and all settlement building on the West Bank. Speaking in Ramallah on Saturday, Ban said every Israeli settlement is illegal.

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon: “The world has condemned Israel’s settlement expansion plans in East Jerusalem. Let us be clear: all settlement activities is illegal anywhere in occupied territory, and this must stop. The Quartet has reaffirmed it, that position.”

The next day, Ban visited the Gaza Strip, where he said the US-backed Israeli blockade has caused “unacceptable suffering.” His visit followed the release of a statement by the Quartet of the US, Russia, European Union and UN calling for an end to Israeli settlement activity and the establishment of an independent Palestinian state within the next two years.