Tokyo: Japan on Wednesday called on Israel to ensure unimpeded humanitarian access to Gaza and expressed concern over illegal settlements in the West Bank. The remarks came during a meeting between Japanese State Minister for Foreign Affairs Ayano Kunimitsu and Emanuel Navon, Israel's ambassador-designate to Japan, according to a Thursday statement.

According to Anadolu Agency, during discussions on the situation in the Middle East, Kunimitsu strongly urged that Israel "take appropriate responses to ensure unimpeded humanitarian assistance activities by international organizations and NGOs in the Gaza Strip." Kunimitsu also highlighted that settlement activities violate international law, referencing the recent developments in the West Bank.

Kunimitsu expressed deep concern over the expansion of settlements and ongoing settler violence, while "strongly urging" that appropriate measures be taken "without delay." The occupied West Bank has seen escalating Israeli occupier terrorism and Israeli measures targeting Palestinians, their property, and land.

Israeli forces have intensified operations in the occupied West Bank since Oct. 8, 2023, when they began a genocidal war against the Gaza Strip. The operations include occupied East Jerusalem, with reports of killings, arrests, forced displacement, home demolitions, and settlement expansion.