(MENAFN) Italian MEP Lucia Annunziata announced Friday that she will skip next week’s European Parliament delegation to Israel, citing the country’s recent move to pass a law enabling West Bank annexation, according to media reports.

"I have decided not to participate in a mission by the European Parliament delegation to Israel at the invitation of the Knesset scheduled for next week," Annunziata said, cited by media.

She explained her refusal by pointing to the law approving the annexation of the West Bank and ongoing, indiscriminate attacks on the UN, which she said "demonstrate that the Israeli Parliament is not ready to talk about peace."

Annunziata also noted that her decision "was taken in agreement with the Democratic Party at national level."

The Israeli parliament, in a first reading on Wednesday, approved two bills: one to annex the occupied West Bank and another targeting the Ma’ale Adumim settlement east of Jerusalem. Both measures still require three further readings before they can become law.

If enacted, the annexation would effectively eliminate any remaining chance of realizing the two-state solution outlined in UN resolutions.

A coalition of 15 countries, including Türkiye, together with the Arab League and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, released a joint statement condemning Israel’s draft laws asserting so-called “Israeli sovereignty” over the West Bank.

In a landmark ruling last July, the International Court of Justice declared Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territory illegal and called for the removal of all settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.

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