Embassy of the State of Palestine

H.E. Ambassador Riyad Mansour : "Until when will the world remain silent, unable to deter the occupying Power from its crimes, hold it accountable and compel it to abide by international law, like the rest of the countries of the world?"

Statement on the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People - 29 November 2024

A Special Meeting at UN Headquarters in New York marked the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People on 26 November 2024. [Click here to watch the recorded live-stream of the Special Meeting] 

In this context, H.E. Mr. Riyad Mansour, Permanent Observer of the State of Palestine, read the following message from H.E. Mr. Mahmoud Abbas, President of the State of Palestine:

H. E. Mr. António Guterres, Secretary-General of the United Nations; H. E. Mr. Philémon Yang, President of the General Assembly; H. E. Ms. Barbara Woodward, President of the Security Council; H. E. Mr. Cheikh Niang, Chair of the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People;

Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,

Today, we commemorate the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People, at a time that our people have endured over 400 days of an ongoing genocidal war, which has led to more than 150,000 casualties, the majority of them being children, women and the elderly, killed and maimed by the Israeli occupying forces, who are deliberately and systematically targeting civilians, in a repetition of what happened in the Nakba of 1948 and tragedy of 1967, aimed at displacing our people and seizing their land and the resources. An urgent international intervention is needed to stop this tragedy that is taking place before the eyes and ears of the world.

The international community has declared this international day in support of the rights of our people, foremost their right to self-determination and the independence of their State, which necessitates the of taking practical and dramatic steps to confront the dangers that are threatening millions of lives and the possibility of achieving a just and comprehensive peace, based on international legitimacy and the Arab Peace Initiative.

It is now apparent to the entire world that the main reason for the lack of security and stability in the Middle East is the existence of this illegal occupation, which must be removed from the territory of the State of Palestine, including its capital, East Jerusalem, to ensure the realization of the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people, particularly the right to self-determination, and achieve a just and agreed-upon solution to the Palestine refugees question, in accordance with resolution 194 (III).

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Disregarding the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people over the past 76 years, and treating the occupying Power as a State above international law, shielding it from accountability, thus providing it with impunity for its crimes, and even providing it with financial and military support, has emboldened it to defy the international legitimacy and international law, and to persist in its aggression at every level.

As a consequence, it has declared its rejection of the existence of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), established by the General Assembly, going so far as to consider it a terrorist organization. It has also rejected the decisions of the international courts, and the most recent advisory opinion issued by the International Court of Justice on the cessation of the aggression and ending the illegal occupation, as well as the Court’s binding provisional measures orders and the arrest warrants issued by the International Criminal Court. It has even formally announced its readiness to implement the racial annexation and settlement expansion schemes, in addition to other illegal Israeli policies and practices, including ongoing invasions of cities in the West Bank, killing and arresting innocent people, demolishing their homes, confiscating their land, building illegal settlements, and taking other unilateral steps aimed at consolidating the occupation and ensuring its continuation.

All of this has caused significant harm to the international law-based multilateral system, and to its credibility, which has been shaken by the inability to stop the aggression, despite images of massacred children that have shocked humanity, the latest of which was the biased use of veto at the UN Security Council, to prevent a comprehensive and permanent ceasefire and thus allow the aggression against our people to carry on.

Until when, the world will remain silent, unable to deter the occupying Power from its crimes, hold it accountable and compel it to abide by international law, like the rest of the countries of the world?

Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,

A few days ago, we commemorated the anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, which was a most significant step reflecting our adherence to the international legitimacy and international law, in which we affirmed our respect for the UN resolutions, in relation to the two-state solution, as a way to achieve a just and comprehensive peace.

The Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), the sole legitimate representative of our Palestinian people and the umbrella of all the Palestinians, has embodied the hopes and aspirations of our people for freedom and independence, stressing on the need to eliminate the occupation from the entire Palestinian territory occupied in 1967, and to resist it through all political, legal and diplomatic means, and by peaceful, non-violent popular resistance. It has also stressed that no matter what the occupation does, it will not succeed in breaking the steadfastness of our people and their attachment to their land and their rights, always supported by the solidarity of the peoples of the world, who will not allow the occupation’s plans to liquidate the just cause of Palestine and to obliterate the legitimate rights of our people, and will not allow the occupation to implement its annexation plans, apartheid, ethnic cleansing and other policies that violate international legitimacy and international law.

We stress the importance of taking practical steps to deter the occupation, including by suspending Israel’s membership in the United Nations, due to its refusal to abide by international law and its obligations, and due to its insistence on completing its crimes against the Palestinian people. Such steps are required to restore confidence in the ability of the international system to hold accountable those who violate international agreements and international law, and compel them to fulfil their obligations.

We have consistently stressed that the only way to halt the dangerous escalation we are witnessing in the region, and maintain regional and international stability, security and peace, is to resolve the question of Palestine on the basis of international legitimacy resolutions, and to immediately begin implementing Security Council resolution 2735 (2024), to ensure the provision of humanitarian assistance to the entire Gaza Strip, Israel’s full withdrawal from the Gaza Strip, the assumption of the State of Palestine’s sovereign responsibilities, and the return of the displaced persons to their homes, in preparation for the reconstruction of what has been destroyed by the occupation. At the same time, it is imperative to reject Israel’s plans to separate Gaza from the West Bank, including Jerusalem, to diminish the State of Palestine’s responsibility for it, to stop the settlements, end the occupation, the killings, the settler terrorism, the attacks on the holy sites, and to stop the attempts to alter the legal status quo and historical realities in the Holy City, as well as to stop the raids on cities, the extrajudicial killings, the arbitrary arrests, and attacks on prisoners, the withholding of the bodies of martyrs, and plundering the Palestinian people’s money and resources. This illegal occupation in its entirety must be brought to an end.

Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,

Despite all the difficulties we are facing today, we believe that no matter how brutal and horrific the occupation is, it will come to an end. We will continue to work to attain the rights of the Palestinian people to self-determination and freedom and independence on their land, the land of their ancestors, and to realize the independence of their State with East Jerusalem as its capital. We are confident that the peoples of the world will continue to stand by the rights, justice and freedom of Palestine and its people, and that they will continue to work towards stopping the aggression, the war, the killing, the destruction and the displacement.

Here, allow me, in my name and on behalf of the Palestinian people, to express appreciation to all the peoples of the world who have stood up and are still standing up, to speak out against injustice and aggression, demanding an end to this illegal and abhorrent occupation that has tarnished the face of history with blood, murder and deprivation of the rights, freedom and independence of an entire people, demanding also an end to the genocide of our steadfast people in the Gaza Strip.

They have affirmed that these dangerous circumstances require transforming these courageous positions into actions, through the positions of their governments and parliaments, to support the steadfastness of our people on their land, and maintain their hope for a firm international consensus to achieve peace and stability in accordance with international law. At the front of this consensus is the need to continue mobilization of the international support to actualize the independence of the State of Palestine, to complete States’ recognition of the State of Palestine, as well as obtaining its full membership of the United Nations.

We must also commend the great efforts being made by the Global Alliance for the Implementation of the Two-State Solution, which held its first meeting in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, with broad participation from brothers and friends, to implement this goal that we collectively seek to achieve.

Finally, I would like on this day to salute the resilience of our Palestinian people in Palestine, and in the refugee camps and in the diaspora, and with pride and honor, I salute our brave martyrs, prisoners and wounded people, and tell them all: our unified goal is to end this illegal occupation and achieve freedom and independence. Once again, I reiterate that the occupation will end and Palestinian rights will prevail, no matter how long it takes.

Peace be upon you.

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