PALESTINE
Road to Resolution
The speech delivered by Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas at the UN General Assembly did not turn the table. But it included a “timid” return to some of the forbidden areas which the Palestinian Authority had abandoned since the signing of the Oslo Accords in September 1993.
- He called for adherence to the Hashemite guardianship over the Islamic and Christian holy sites in occupied Jerusalem. This is the first time that the head of the authority and the PLO has shown its commitment to it.
- He demanded implementation of UN Resolutions No. 181 (partition) and No. 194 (the right of return for Palestinian refugees immediately). This happened after deliberately forgetting them during the last 30 years.
- He emphasis that “Israel” was an apartheid state. If he believed so, why was he always prepared to negotiate with it?
- He asserted that the Oslo Accords were no longer valid on the ground due to Israel’s non-compliance with them. But why did he not say it publicly earlier.
- He threatened to look for other means to obtain rights of Palestinians, because none of the UN resolutions was implemented. But he added ambiguity to this threat.
- He also talked about going to the International Criminal Court to try Israeli war criminals who commit massacres against the Palestinian people. The question is when?
- He also mentioned intention to apply for full UN membership of the State of Palestine and its organisations, in clear defiance of American and Israeli demands not to take this step.
[by Abdul Bari Atwan in Rai Alyoum]
Occupation (Israeli) Prime Minister Yair Lapid did nothing new in his speech, when he described that the two-state solution is the best for Israel and its future…etc.
The clear evidence of the emptiness of Lapid’s speech is that there was no actual commitment to move towards it and his refusal to arrange any meeting with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly.
Lapid also showed his keenness to inform Jordan’s King Abdullah II, during his meeting, that he expected an increase in the number of (Zionist) intrusions into Al-Aqsa Mosque in coming weeks due to the Jewish holidays. The Israeli Prime Minister wanted that the endowment (Awqaf) guards would not put obstacles in the way of these incursions, at a time during which the occupation (Israel) imposes severe restrictions on the West Bank and Gaza Strip.
In fact, Lapid’s speech came to serve two main goals: The first is internal, which is to ensure that he is different from his competitor General Benny Gantz within the anti-Netanyahu camp. This may improve his chances of remaining strongest in this camp.
The second goal is to jump the gun in the face of Mahmoud Abbas’ speech at the UN to present a moderate image of the occupying state and Israeli apartheid, and create the illusion of a possible political atmosphere to launch a negotiation process with the Palestinians. This is to save Israel from international pressures.
[by Nidhal Mohammed in Al-Khaleej Al-Jadeed]
Compiled and translated by Faizul Haque