Embassy of the State of Palestine

ROME—The Vatican said it would soon sign its first treaty with the “State of Palestine,” lending legal weight to a recognition it has extended for more than two years
Agreement deals with religious liberty, legal and tax status of Catholic institutions in Palestinian territories

A high-profile group of former European political leaders and diplomats has called for the urgent reassessment of EU policy on the question of a Palestinian state and has insisted Israel must be held to account for its actions in the occupied territories.

The Ambassador to the General Delegation of Palestine to Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific H.E. Izzat Abdulhadi attended a commemorative and awards dinner in Sydney on the 10th of May 2015. The dinner, which is an annual event, was organized by the General Union of Palestinian Workers, the Australian-Palestinian Club, and the Graduates Association.

With the dust beginning to settle on the new Israeli coalition government, the face of a new form of racist, discriminatory Israel has been revealed. Benjamin Netanyahu vehemently leading the charge to bury the two state solution and impose a perpetual Apartheid regime, Neftali Bennet a new minister boasting the murder of Palestinians, and the new Minister of Justice, Ayelet Shaked, openly calling on the genocide and ethnic cleansing of the Palestinian people.

PLO Executive Committee member Dr. Hanan Ashrawi stated:

“Such a coalition betrays the true nature of the Israeli political system and promotes an anti-peace agenda and the language of racism, extremism and violence; it will further increase the isolation and deligitimization of Israel.

In addition to the extremism in the Likud and the ideologies of the religious parties, the Jewish Home Party, which now has control of the Israeli Civil Administration and the Security Cabinet, represents the most extreme and racist elements within Israeli society.

The Palestine Investors' Conference in the Homeland and the Diaspora took place in Ramallah May 4, 2015 with the aim to promote investment in the state of Palestine by Palestinians living in the diaspora. The conference that was organizes by the Palestine International Business Forum, was attended by dozens of Palestinian businessmen living both in the occupied territories and abroad.

05 May 2015
Jerusalem
The head of the Israeli army during the summer war in Gaza has made the allegation that a weapon fired from an UNRWA school in Gaza killed an Israeli child in a kibbutz in southern Israel. This allegation was made by the Israeli Army in August 2014. However, it is false. Less than 2 hours after it was first made by the Israeli army, the Israeli army itself officially retracted the claim and issued a correction through the Twitter account of its Spokesperson (see “screen cap below). It is extremely disappointing that a former head of the Israeli army should repeat an allegation publicly retracted by his own spokesperson. It is unfortunate and creates a hostile environment for humanitarian agencies. Officials should ensure accuracy of their public statements.

United Nations Secretary-General BAN Ki-moon today announced the appointment of Robert Piper of Australia as Deputy Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, at the level of Assistant Secretary-General. Mr. Piper will also serve as United Nations Resident Coordinator and Humanitarian Coordinator for the Occupied Palestinian Territory.

The Palestinian Foreign Affairs Minister made a successful two-day visit to New Zealand from 30 April to 2 May 2015 to conduct talks with New Zealand officials, in particular the Minister of Foreign Affairs Mr. Murray McCully. The meetings proved to be a success, with McCully informing Al-Malki of the desire of New Zealand to propose a resolution in the Security Council that would end Israeli Occupation of Palestinian Territories

The Secretary-General strongly condemns the shelling and aerial bombardment of the Yarmouk refugee camp in Damascus on 28 April despite assurances from the Syrian Government that the camp would not be attacked while civilians remained inside. Thousands of civilians in the camp are besieged by terrorist and other armed groups on the inside and Government forces on the outside.