LOC22:52
19:52 GMT
GENEVA, Nov 29 (KUNA) -- Marking the International Day of Solidarity with
the Palestinian People, the United Nations (UN) Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon
said Thursday that the International Day came at a time when Palestinians
continued to suffer the indignities and violence of Israeli occupation.
Recalling the recent meeting held under the auspices of the U.S. President
in Annapolis aimed to conclude a peace treaty, he emphasized that
implementation of pledges made at that meeting between the parties was of
paramount importance.
The Director-General of the United Nations Office at Geneva Sergei
Ordzhonikidze, who chaired the meeting, read out the message, called for final
status negotiations to begin in earnest to address all the issues: Jerusalem,
refugees, borders, settlements, security, and water.
"Without implementing long-standing commitments under the Road Map and the
Agreement on Movement and Access, the diplomatic process could not succeed. If
peace was built on hope, not despair, the world must also reach out to the
people of Gaza," said Ban Ki-Moon.
He added that they had suffered more than anyone else from conflict and
poverty.
"Now that the Palestinian leadership had embarked on a new quest with
Israel to end the conflict and secure a better future for their children, the
international community should show its solidarity with the Palestinian people
-- and the Israeli people too -- by giving its unyielding support to their
efforts and not resting until the goal was achieved," concluded the statement
of the Secretary-General.
Ambassador of Palestine to Switzerland Anis Al-Qaq read a statement on
behalf of Mahmoud Abbas, Chairman of the Executive Committee of the Palestine
Liberation Organization (PLO) and President of the Palestinian National
Authority, who said that the meeting represented a very important juncture and
opportunity for launching serious peace negotiations within a set time frame
under the auspices of and with the participation of the international
community, including the members represented by the international Quartet.
Representative of the League of Arab States Saad Al-Farargi noted that it
had been 40 years since the occupation of Arab lands and since the onset of
the negative effects on the daily lives of the Palestinian people and added
that the international community must hold Israel accountable for its actions
and must compel the Hebrew to respect the international legitimacy of a
Palestinian state.
The League of Arab States called on the international community and the
Quartet to take immediate steps to resume the Road Map peace process.
Saad Al-Farargi said that the League of Arab States had participated in the
Annapolis Conference in good faith as a step to pave the way to further the
peace process and in order to avoid further suffering by the Palestinian
people.
"This must be followed by genuine and useful negotiations with deadlines,"
he added.
Permanent Observer of the African Union Khadija Rachida Masri paid homage
to the (UN) which, through its relevant bodies, had been making notable
efforts to defend the legitimate interests of the Palestinians.
She stressed that the African Union firmly condemned Israeli measures of
repression, the inhuman aggressions and the acts of State terrorism
perpetrated against defenseless Palestinian civilians, such as targeted
assassinations as well as the hate crimes and massacres such as those
perpetrated by the Israeli forces in Beit Hanoun and Ramallah at the beginning
of this year.
General Arab Women Federation's representative Juliette Sayedgh recalled
that after 40 years of occupation by Israel of the West Bank, including East
Jerusalem and the Gaza Strip, 70 percent of the Palestinian people were
forcefully displaced from their land and about 6.8 million Palestinians were
refugees and half million internally displaced. (end)
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