Mahmoud Abbas, President of the State of Palestine, addresses the general debate of the 73rd Session of the General Assembly of the UN (New York, 25 September - 01 October 2018).

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas opened his address to the UN General Assembly saying, “Jerusalem is not for sale and the Palestinian people's rights are not up for bargaining.”

Speaking today (27 Sep) at the UN Headquarters in New York, Abbas said the recent Nation-State law based by the Israeli Knesset reminded of the apartheid state of South Africa and discriminated against non-Jewish citizens of Israel. He called on the Assembly to condemn it as “racist” and to deem it null and void.

SOUNDBITE (Arabic) Mahmoud Abbas, President, Palestine:
“This racist law, ladies and gentlemen, talks about what is called the ‘land of Israel’. Can you ask the Israeli Government what exactly constitutes the ‘land of Israel’, and where are the borders of the State of Israel which I challenge anyone of you to know where it is? Where is it?”

The Palestinian President said the decisions taken by the Trump administration to move the US embassy to Jerusalem and close the PLO office in Washington threaten the Palestinian national cause and constitute an assault on international law and relevant United Nations resolutions. He stressed that the administration has reneged all previous US commitments and undermined the two-state solution with the decisions. He added, “What is ironic is that the American administration still talks about what they call the ‘deal of the century,’ but what is left for this administration to give to the Palestinian people? Is it only humanitarian solutions? Because when you take away Jerusalem, refugees, security, and other matters from the table, what is left for them to give us as a political solution for the Middle East?”

Abbas said peace in the Middle East could not be realized without an independent Palestinian State, with East Jerusalem as its capital. He said there were many who are “trying to outsmart” the Palestinian people by claiming that their capital is “in East Jerusalem”. He said this is “wordplay” and emphasized that the capital of Palestine “is East Jerusalem” including the Al-Aqsa mosque and the Church of Nativity.

The Palestinian President called on all countries to recognize the State of Palestine on the basis of the 1967 borders. He said, “We are not a redundant people on planet earth; every people, regardless of the size of their population, are given their rights. Why are all the road closed to us and became considered a redundant people, an excess that needs to be removed? We do not accept this. We cannot bare this; however, we will remain patient, steadfast, and we still believe in peace and peaceful means. However, Look at us as human beings and not redundant on this planet.”

Turning to the national reconciliation process, Abbas said the Palestinian Authority adhered the agreement made with Hamas but they in turn have not. He said, “Therefore, we will not, will not, will not, take any responsibility from now on. I hope you understand my words. We will not take any responsibility if they insist on refusing the deal.”

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