Al-Jubeir called for the international community to respect the legal status of Jerusalem GENEVA: Saudi Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Adel Al-Jubeir has said his country is making great progress in championing domestic and international human rights, in a speech at the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva on Wednesday. Speaking at the high-level segment of the 40th regular session of the council, the minister said that enhancing women’s rights and the protection of children, in particular, had been prioritized by the government of King Salman, and that the Kingdom aimed to increase the number of women participating in the labor market to 30 percent by 2030. He also addressed several other contentious issues affecting the wider region, including the current situations in Palestine, Syria and Yemen. Al-Jubeir reaffirmed Saudi support for the Palestinian cause, and called for the international community to respect the legal status of Jerusalem (Al-Quds) in accordance with the 1967 border agreement, guaranteeing the existence of Palestine, with East Jerusalem as its capital. He added that the Kingdom supported the Syrian people and their right to territorial integrity, independence, unity, and freedom from interference from foreign powers, and asked for an urgent solution to the crisis, under UN Security Council Resolution 2254, to be found. Al-Jubeir confirmed in early February that Saudi Arabia “looks forward to the result of preserving Syria"s independence and unity and leading to the removal of external forces from them.” On Yemen, the minister highlighted the $13 billion in aid distributed to civilians by January 2019 by Saudi organizations and government ministries, and added: “The Kingdom continues to provide all forms of support and assistance to the people of Yemen.” He condemned the systematic violations of human rights committed against the Rohingya people in Myanmar, meanwhile, and called for concerted efforts to put an end to the violence against men, women and children, for the return of refugees to their lands, and for the provision of more humanitarian assistance. Concluding by issuing a rallying cry to the international community to put an end to Iranian violations of human rights, he said the country’s actions, including against its own people as well as those in neighboring countries, through violence and inciting sectarian conflicts, could no longer be tolerated. On the sidelines of the session, Al-Jubeir met with UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet, where the pair discussed several of the issues the minister raised in his address.