Published today 12:36 ISTANBUL (Ma’an) --

Turkish PM Recep Tayyib Erdogan and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas addressed a conference of Palestinian Authority foreign ambassadors in Istanbul on Saturday.

In the opening speech, Erdogan expressed his desire to see Palestinian reconciliation completed as soon as possible.

He also reasserted that Turkey would continue to support the Palestinian people in every way possible, namely in their September bid for UN recognition of a Palestinian state.

“The whole world should take action in order to end the illegal siege imposed on the Gaza Strip. Israel must also accept that East Jerusalem is capital of the Palestinian state, as Israel can’t deny the deprived Palestinian people the right to establish their own state.”

President Abbas said that the PA decided to go to the UN after negotiations with Israel reached an impasse.

“This can’t be considered a unilateral move, as a unilateral move is settlement construction which Israel keeps ongoing,” Abbas said.

Abbas highlighted, however, that seeking UN recognition of statehood would not prevent the resumption of negotiations with Israel “because there are certain issues which can’t be resolved by the UN Security Council, or other bodies can resolve. They can only be resolved through negotiations.”

“We had fruitful and important negotiations and we almost reached an agreement with former Israeli prime minister Ehud Olmert after we discussed all the core issues and each side understood what the other wanted,” he added, noting that negotiations in their current framework could not offer anything because of Israeli stubbornness.

“We want coexistence with Israel as neighbors after we obtain our rights. We want to obtain our state after they obtained theirs in accordance with the UN General Assembly resolution 181 which stipulated establishment of a Palestinian state.

"They established their state, and then forgot about us and we are still forgotten,” Abbas said.

Abbas also said that the PA had told the US administration that they did not want a confrontation.

“Contacts with the US have not stopped,” he said.

The United States and Israel openly oppose the Palestinian UN bid for statehood.

Abbas says statehood results would not stop peace talks with Israel

[ 23/07/2011 - 11:20 AM ]

ISTANBUL, (PIC)--

Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas said that no matter what results take place in the bid to seek statehood from the United Nations, it would not stop negotiations with the Israelis.

Abbas explained that some issues can only be resolved through peace talks.

Abbas opened a conference of Palestinian ambassadors in the Turkish capital Istanbul on Saturday, with Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan in attendance.

''We adopted going to the UN after negotiations broke down. It is not a unilateral move, the only unilateral move is the settlement continued by Israel,'' Abbas said.

''We have spent many years trying to reach results in negotiations, but these days we see that results in negotiations have not come about because of Israel's intransigence, after we had held important and meaningful negotiations and almost came to a deal with former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, and we weighed all basic issues, and each party knew and understood the position of the other party''.

''Our Palestinian people, with all sects and parties, from Hamas to Fatah, agree on the option of going to the United Nations. We are keen on going to the United Nations in agreement and united, so that there would be no excuse for anyone in getting our state,'' Abbas went on to say.

Washington says PA should fight resistance to get money

[ 23/07/2011 - 05:58 AM ]

New York, (PIC)--

Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, the chairperson of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, has urged the White House not to extend a single penny to the PA in Ramallah until it totally bows to American orders and demands in fighting Palestinian resistance, Hebrew press revealed.

Ros-Lehtinen’s proposal came in reaction to the White House request tabled in the Congress to approve the release of 550 million dollars to the PA in Ramallah on condition that no Hamas member should work in the PA institutions and apparatuses.

On Wednesday, the committee started discussing a petition imposing conditions on the US assistance to Egypt, Lebanon, Yemen, and the PA, and to block aid in the event "radical" groups against the US took power in those countries.

However, the committee left it to the US president to decide whether or not to continue funding those countries based on his evaluation to the interest of the US national security.

In a related matter, Palestinian citizens in Al-Khalil (Hebron) city, south of the West Bank, revolted against the PA security apparatuses policy of summoning citizens to police headquarters.

Tens of relatives of political prisoners in the PA jails in the West Bank gathered at Ibn Rushd Square chanting phrases against political detention and against arresting Palestinian women.

The crowds also vowed not to respect summonses by the PA security apparatuses, stressing that such abhorred policy must stop.

Few days ago, activists in the West Bank unleashed "I am not afraid" campaign on the internet to reject political detention and summonses by the PA security apparatuses, underlining that the PA security apparatuses couldn’t just suppress the freedom of the Palestinian people.

The crowds also urged the Palestinian people to reject oppression, underscoring that Palestinian people hadn’t and shouldn’t accept the arrest of Palestinian women.

"We wonder when would you join us and say no to the political detention and say no to oppression. Enough is enough; we need to restore our freedom. We were born free and we should remain free. It is about time for you Palestinian people to join us and say no to political summonses", the protesters said.