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19:40 GMT
UNITED NATIONS, July 16 (KUNA) -- Members of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM)
on Monday condemned the recent "criminal" actions carried out by Hamas in
Gaza, stressing that the Palestinian Liberation Organisation (PLO) remains the
"sole and legitimate" representative of the Palestinian people and an
"essential" party to any negotiations aimed at resolving the
Palestinian-Israeli conflict.
In a statement distributed here today, NAM, comprising over 120 countries
and chaired by Cuba, called for urgent efforts to be undertaken in order to
avoid the complete disintegration of the foundation of a future sovereign,
viable, independent Palestinian State and to rehabilitate and develop
Palestinian institutions.
NAM called for the restoration of the situation in the Gaza Strip to that
which existed prior to the recent events, and for measures to be taken to
preserve the territorial unity and integrity of the Palestinian Territory,
including East Jerusalem.
It called on the Palestinian leadership, the leaders of all factions and
all Palestinians to unite in support of President Mahmoud Abbas and to resolve
their differences by peaceful means, expressing support for a national
dialogue to achieve national reconciliation.
Blaming the Jewish state for what happened in Gaza recently, NAM said the
Israeli actions, including military attacks, "have seriously undermined the
functioning of the Palestinian Authority and have undoubtedly contributed to
the growing polarization in the Palestinian society."
NAM also condemned Israel for the prolonged occupation of the Palestinian
territory and for all the "war crimes" it perpetrated there for four decades.
It finally called on the parties to the Middle East conflict to "urgently"
resume peace negotiations on all tracks on the basis of international law,
relevant UN resolutions, the principle of land for peace and the Arab Peace
Initiative in order to comprehensively resolve the Arab-Israeli conflict as a
whole. (end)
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