24/02/2010 Turkey Wednesday called on Israel to refrain from taking a "unilateral and provocative" step with its plan to renovate two West Bank holy sites.
"Such a move will damage efforts to relaunch talks to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and create significant mistrust between the parties," the Turkish foreign ministry said in a statement.
"We urge Israel to abide by international law... and refrain from unilateral and provocative action on historical sites that are essentially a part of Islamic cultural heritage and include places holy to Muslims," it added.
Earlier this week, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he hoped to include Rachel's Tomb in Bethlehem and the Tomb of the Patriarchs in Al-Khalil in a national heritage restoration plan, sparking outrage among Palestinians.
Earlier this month, Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman slammed Turkey for its recent "anti-Israeli" stance but said the Zionist entity would continue efforts to rebuild ties with long-time ally Ankara.
River to Sea
Uprooted Palestinian
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