4 nov 2012
Abbas widely slammed on social networking websites
GAZA, (PIC)-- The latest serious remarks made by de facto president Mahmoud Abbas have received widespread condemnation on popular social networking websites from different Arab and Palestinian noted writers and intellectuals.
Editor-in-chief of the London-based Al-Quds Al-Arabi newspaper Abdulbari Atwan described Abbas on his twitter page as "dangerous to the Palestinian constants."
"Abbas is not able to defend the right of others from his people to return to Palestine when he gave up his own right to return to his hometown Safed…This man has become a threat to the Palestinian constants and must go," Atwan said.
Saudi political writer Hasan Al-Ajmi commented on Atwan's twitter remarks by saying, "he has been dangerous for a long time and he is definitely more evil than the occupier. He is the one who confers legitimacy on the existence of the occupier. May God be with you, Palestine."
Specialist in Israeli affairs Saleh Al-Naami twitted: "the Palestinian left, which boycotted the visit of the Qatari emir to Gaza at the pretext he had ties with Israel, continues to sit with Abbas, although he waived the right of return."
"All Fatah leaders are aware of the damage caused by Abbas's outspoken concession on the right of return, but they embark on vulgarly inventing interpretations for it for fear they lose their financial privileges," Naami added.
Director of the London-based Islamic political thought institute Azzam Al-Tamimi said on his page that "Abbas does not have anything in order to give up, and his statements are a kind of hallucination and of no value except that they confirm his deviance and bankruptcy."
Journalist for Palestine newspaper Mohamed Yasin stated on his facebook page that "what many facebook activists said against Abbas following his remarks on the right of return was like a popular trial and a final irrevocable sentence against him releasing him from his posts."
In a related incident, the Islamic student bloc at Birzeit university staged on Saturday afternoon a protest against Abbas's remarks on the right of return and the popular intifada (uprising).
According to the reporter for the Palestinian information (PIC) in Ramallah city, dozens of Birzeit student rallied outside the student council carrying Palestinian flags and banners slamming Abbas's antinational remarks.
Hamas: Fatah spokesmen should apologize rather than defend Abbas’s crime
GAZA, (PIC)-- Hamas movement said that the remarks by PA chief and Fatah leader Mahmoud Abbas virtually renouncing right of return and incriminating resistance constituted a crime against the Palestinian people.
A responsible source in Hamas said in a statement on Sunday responding to Fatah spokesman’s defense of Abbas’s statements that those spokesmen should force Abbas to apologize to the Palestinian people for his grave mistake or else he would be brought to account before the people for renouncing RoR and resistance against occupation.
He said that the attempts to cover up for and distract the attention away from those statements were tantamount to the same crime committed by Abbas.
The source affirmed that Fatah spokesmen were trying to divert the attention away from Abbas by attacking Hamas and leveling charges against the movement, which the spokesmen know quite well are wrong.
Let Fatah and the Palestinian people be rest assured that Hamas would never trek the road of shameful negotiations and concessions, the source concluded.
Meanwhile, Hamas organized massive demonstrations in central Gaza Strip to denounce Abbas and his statements.
A spokesman for the movement described Abbas’s statements as “ill-fated”, stressing that RoR is a sacred right that could never be forsaken.
He asked the Palestinian factions topped by Fatah to voice clear positions toward this “farce”.
The demonstrators slammed Abbas for his “irresponsible” statements and called on him to resign his position.
Zahalka calls for a mass protest in rejection to the Abbas's remarks
NAZARETH, (PIC)-- A Palestinian leader from 194 ccupied territories, called on Fatah movement to rebuke PA President Mahmoud Abbas due to the remarks he had recently made.
The Arab MK Jamal Zahalka said that Abbas's remarks contradicted the Palestinian National program which affirms the right of return of refugees to their homes, the right to self-determination and to establish an independent Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital.
He stressed that Palestinians from the 1948- occupied territories oppose Abbas' remarks to Israeli Channel 2 TV and his ceding of the national principles which form the basis of the Palestinian cause.
The head of the "National Democratic Assembly" called on all Palestinians to a mass protest in rejection of Abbas's political stances, stressing that his remarks have not had any significant impact on the Israeli street.
Zahalka told "Quds Press" Agency that the primary purpose behind Abbas's remarks is to protect himself and ensure the continuation of his presidency in light of the Israeli threats demanding his removal because he is no longer able to proceed in the peace process.
He added that "The concessions made by Abbas weaken the Palestinian position and involve an attempt to beg Israel", stressing that negotiations with Israelis are useless as they have failed throughout the past and that Abbas's remarks only encourage Israeli aggression and violations.
The Palestinian leader considered that it is necessary for the Palestinian side to change its strategies. Instead of offering concessions and begging the occupation authorities, it should exercise pressure on Israel through escalating the Popular Resistance and international pressure, as he said.
Hamas urges Palestinian factions to delegitimize Abbas
GAZA, (PIC)-- The Hamas Movement on Saturday called on all Palestinian factions to stop providing de facto president Mahmoud Abbas with political cover following his recent serious remarks about the right of return and the popular intifada (uprising).
"The one who waives the right of return must give up his right to represent and lead the Palestinian people, and if he does not, the Palestinian people will no longer be bound to recognize him as their representative unless he backtracks on his remarks and apologizes to the people and the resistance," Hamas emphasized in a press release.
Hamas highlighted that Abbas departed from the national consensus and his remarks only reflect himself because the Palestinian rights belong to the whole Palestinian people from all spectra and cannot be decided by one person or a bunch of individuals.
It added that Abbas challenged the feelings of the Palestinian people, the Arab and Muslim nations, and those supporting the Palestinian rights, thus the Palestinian factions, especially Fatah, should isolate him and revoke the political cover he was given.
In this regard, thousands of Palestinians participated in rallies in different Gaza areas to denounce Abbas's stated concessions on the Palestinian rights.
The protestors carried banners and chanted slogans condemning Abbas and describing his remarks as the Balfour declaration of the 21st century.
In an interview with an Israeli television station last Friday, Abbas declared that he had no right to live in Safed, his hometown, from which his family and thousands of other Palestinians were uprooted and expelled in 1948 at the hands of European Jews.
"I visited Safed once before, and I want to see Safed; it is my right to see it but not to live there," Abbas told the Israeli channel 2.
Abbas blatantly claimed that Palestine include only the West Bank, Gaza Strip and east Jerusalem.
"Palestine for me is the 1967 borders, with east Jerusalem as its capital. This is now and forever. This is Palestine for me. I am a refugee, but I am living in Ramallah. I believe the West Bank and Gaza Strip are Palestine and the other parts are Israel."
Furthermore, Abbas said he would not allow a new intifada against Israel as long as he was the head of the Palestinian authority in Ramallah city.
Abbas called "traitor" in Amman conference on Palestinian refugees
AMMAN, (PIC)-- De facto president Mahmoud Abbas was strongly denounced and described as a traitor by the speakers during the conference on "the Palestinian refugees and the Arab spring" that was held on Saturday in the Jordanian capital Amman.
Among the speakers was Ahmed Nofal, a professor of political science at the Jordanian university of Yarmouk, who called on Fatah faction to hold Abbas accountable for his betrayal of the Palestinian cause in general and the issue of Palestinian refugees in particular.
Nofal challenged Abbas to visit any Palestinian refugee camp anywhere inside or outside Palestine after he stated his position clearly against the right of Palestinian refugees to return to their homes and lands.
He noted that Jordan is directly affected by Abbas's position in this regard because he implied his acceptance of resettling the refugees in their whereabouts.
For his part, dean of the Jordanian agronomists Mahmoud Abu Ghanima expressed his shock and dismay at Abbas's remarks.
"We are greatly surprised by a president who gives up his country to those occupying it and then asks for permission to visit it as a tourist as if the homeland to him is only for excursions," Abu Ghanima said in a press release.
"Why was the anniversary of the fateful Balfour declaration chosen in order to waive the right of return through an Israeli TV? Was it political stupidity or a new test balloon? Definitely, such remarks will not be considered innocent or justified under any circumstances," he added.
Rizka calls for delegitimizing Abbas
GAZA, (PIC)-- Dr. Yousef Rizka, the political advisor to premier Ismail Haneyya, has denounced recent remarks by Mahmoud Abbas, the PA chief, in an interview with the Israeli television.
He said in an article published in daily Palestine newspaper on Sunday that Abbas should have declared insistence on the lands of his fathers and forefathers instead of renouncing them.
Rizka affirmed that the Palestinian people are adamant on returning to their homeland, and asked Abbas to define his hometown Safad “Is it Palestinian or Hebrew?”
Rizka urged the Palestinian people and factions to delegitimize Abbas as in the youth campaign that raised the slogan: “Abbas does not represent me”.
The advisor said that concessions have nothing to do with diplomacy or politics as Abbas’s supporters are trying to circulate. Capitulation and cowering do not return rights, he added.
Abbas told the Israeli TV that he considers Palestine to be the West Bank and Gaza Strip and the rest of historical Palestine is Israel. He thus gave up more than three quarters of historical Palestine and renounced the refugees’ right of return.
Editor-in-chief of the London-based Al-Quds Al-Arabi newspaper Abdulbari Atwan described Abbas on his twitter page as "dangerous to the Palestinian constants."
"Abbas is not able to defend the right of others from his people to return to Palestine when he gave up his own right to return to his hometown Safed…This man has become a threat to the Palestinian constants and must go," Atwan said.
Saudi political writer Hasan Al-Ajmi commented on Atwan's twitter remarks by saying, "he has been dangerous for a long time and he is definitely more evil than the occupier. He is the one who confers legitimacy on the existence of the occupier. May God be with you, Palestine."
Specialist in Israeli affairs Saleh Al-Naami twitted: "the Palestinian left, which boycotted the visit of the Qatari emir to Gaza at the pretext he had ties with Israel, continues to sit with Abbas, although he waived the right of return."
"All Fatah leaders are aware of the damage caused by Abbas's outspoken concession on the right of return, but they embark on vulgarly inventing interpretations for it for fear they lose their financial privileges," Naami added.
Director of the London-based Islamic political thought institute Azzam Al-Tamimi said on his page that "Abbas does not have anything in order to give up, and his statements are a kind of hallucination and of no value except that they confirm his deviance and bankruptcy."
Journalist for Palestine newspaper Mohamed Yasin stated on his facebook page that "what many facebook activists said against Abbas following his remarks on the right of return was like a popular trial and a final irrevocable sentence against him releasing him from his posts."
In a related incident, the Islamic student bloc at Birzeit university staged on Saturday afternoon a protest against Abbas's remarks on the right of return and the popular intifada (uprising).
According to the reporter for the Palestinian information (PIC) in Ramallah city, dozens of Birzeit student rallied outside the student council carrying Palestinian flags and banners slamming Abbas's antinational remarks.
Hamas: Fatah spokesmen should apologize rather than defend Abbas’s crime
GAZA, (PIC)-- Hamas movement said that the remarks by PA chief and Fatah leader Mahmoud Abbas virtually renouncing right of return and incriminating resistance constituted a crime against the Palestinian people.
A responsible source in Hamas said in a statement on Sunday responding to Fatah spokesman’s defense of Abbas’s statements that those spokesmen should force Abbas to apologize to the Palestinian people for his grave mistake or else he would be brought to account before the people for renouncing RoR and resistance against occupation.
He said that the attempts to cover up for and distract the attention away from those statements were tantamount to the same crime committed by Abbas.
The source affirmed that Fatah spokesmen were trying to divert the attention away from Abbas by attacking Hamas and leveling charges against the movement, which the spokesmen know quite well are wrong.
Let Fatah and the Palestinian people be rest assured that Hamas would never trek the road of shameful negotiations and concessions, the source concluded.
Meanwhile, Hamas organized massive demonstrations in central Gaza Strip to denounce Abbas and his statements.
A spokesman for the movement described Abbas’s statements as “ill-fated”, stressing that RoR is a sacred right that could never be forsaken.
He asked the Palestinian factions topped by Fatah to voice clear positions toward this “farce”.
The demonstrators slammed Abbas for his “irresponsible” statements and called on him to resign his position.
Zahalka calls for a mass protest in rejection to the Abbas's remarks
NAZARETH, (PIC)-- A Palestinian leader from 194 ccupied territories, called on Fatah movement to rebuke PA President Mahmoud Abbas due to the remarks he had recently made.
The Arab MK Jamal Zahalka said that Abbas's remarks contradicted the Palestinian National program which affirms the right of return of refugees to their homes, the right to self-determination and to establish an independent Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital.
He stressed that Palestinians from the 1948- occupied territories oppose Abbas' remarks to Israeli Channel 2 TV and his ceding of the national principles which form the basis of the Palestinian cause.
The head of the "National Democratic Assembly" called on all Palestinians to a mass protest in rejection of Abbas's political stances, stressing that his remarks have not had any significant impact on the Israeli street.
Zahalka told "Quds Press" Agency that the primary purpose behind Abbas's remarks is to protect himself and ensure the continuation of his presidency in light of the Israeli threats demanding his removal because he is no longer able to proceed in the peace process.
He added that "The concessions made by Abbas weaken the Palestinian position and involve an attempt to beg Israel", stressing that negotiations with Israelis are useless as they have failed throughout the past and that Abbas's remarks only encourage Israeli aggression and violations.
The Palestinian leader considered that it is necessary for the Palestinian side to change its strategies. Instead of offering concessions and begging the occupation authorities, it should exercise pressure on Israel through escalating the Popular Resistance and international pressure, as he said.
Hamas urges Palestinian factions to delegitimize Abbas
GAZA, (PIC)-- The Hamas Movement on Saturday called on all Palestinian factions to stop providing de facto president Mahmoud Abbas with political cover following his recent serious remarks about the right of return and the popular intifada (uprising).
"The one who waives the right of return must give up his right to represent and lead the Palestinian people, and if he does not, the Palestinian people will no longer be bound to recognize him as their representative unless he backtracks on his remarks and apologizes to the people and the resistance," Hamas emphasized in a press release.
Hamas highlighted that Abbas departed from the national consensus and his remarks only reflect himself because the Palestinian rights belong to the whole Palestinian people from all spectra and cannot be decided by one person or a bunch of individuals.
It added that Abbas challenged the feelings of the Palestinian people, the Arab and Muslim nations, and those supporting the Palestinian rights, thus the Palestinian factions, especially Fatah, should isolate him and revoke the political cover he was given.
In this regard, thousands of Palestinians participated in rallies in different Gaza areas to denounce Abbas's stated concessions on the Palestinian rights.
The protestors carried banners and chanted slogans condemning Abbas and describing his remarks as the Balfour declaration of the 21st century.
In an interview with an Israeli television station last Friday, Abbas declared that he had no right to live in Safed, his hometown, from which his family and thousands of other Palestinians were uprooted and expelled in 1948 at the hands of European Jews.
"I visited Safed once before, and I want to see Safed; it is my right to see it but not to live there," Abbas told the Israeli channel 2.
Abbas blatantly claimed that Palestine include only the West Bank, Gaza Strip and east Jerusalem.
"Palestine for me is the 1967 borders, with east Jerusalem as its capital. This is now and forever. This is Palestine for me. I am a refugee, but I am living in Ramallah. I believe the West Bank and Gaza Strip are Palestine and the other parts are Israel."
Furthermore, Abbas said he would not allow a new intifada against Israel as long as he was the head of the Palestinian authority in Ramallah city.
Abbas called "traitor" in Amman conference on Palestinian refugees
AMMAN, (PIC)-- De facto president Mahmoud Abbas was strongly denounced and described as a traitor by the speakers during the conference on "the Palestinian refugees and the Arab spring" that was held on Saturday in the Jordanian capital Amman.
Among the speakers was Ahmed Nofal, a professor of political science at the Jordanian university of Yarmouk, who called on Fatah faction to hold Abbas accountable for his betrayal of the Palestinian cause in general and the issue of Palestinian refugees in particular.
Nofal challenged Abbas to visit any Palestinian refugee camp anywhere inside or outside Palestine after he stated his position clearly against the right of Palestinian refugees to return to their homes and lands.
He noted that Jordan is directly affected by Abbas's position in this regard because he implied his acceptance of resettling the refugees in their whereabouts.
For his part, dean of the Jordanian agronomists Mahmoud Abu Ghanima expressed his shock and dismay at Abbas's remarks.
"We are greatly surprised by a president who gives up his country to those occupying it and then asks for permission to visit it as a tourist as if the homeland to him is only for excursions," Abu Ghanima said in a press release.
"Why was the anniversary of the fateful Balfour declaration chosen in order to waive the right of return through an Israeli TV? Was it political stupidity or a new test balloon? Definitely, such remarks will not be considered innocent or justified under any circumstances," he added.
Rizka calls for delegitimizing Abbas
GAZA, (PIC)-- Dr. Yousef Rizka, the political advisor to premier Ismail Haneyya, has denounced recent remarks by Mahmoud Abbas, the PA chief, in an interview with the Israeli television.
He said in an article published in daily Palestine newspaper on Sunday that Abbas should have declared insistence on the lands of his fathers and forefathers instead of renouncing them.
Rizka affirmed that the Palestinian people are adamant on returning to their homeland, and asked Abbas to define his hometown Safad “Is it Palestinian or Hebrew?”
Rizka urged the Palestinian people and factions to delegitimize Abbas as in the youth campaign that raised the slogan: “Abbas does not represent me”.
The advisor said that concessions have nothing to do with diplomacy or politics as Abbas’s supporters are trying to circulate. Capitulation and cowering do not return rights, he added.
Abbas told the Israeli TV that he considers Palestine to be the West Bank and Gaza Strip and the rest of historical Palestine is Israel. He thus gave up more than three quarters of historical Palestine and renounced the refugees’ right of return.
3 nov 2012
Israel's Peres welcomes 'courageous' words from Abbas
JERUSALEM (Reuters) -- Israeli President Shimon Peres hailed President Mahmoud Abbas as a courageous partner for peace on Saturday after the Palestinian leader made clear his support for a two-state solution to the decades old conflict with Israel.
"(Abbas's) courageous words prove that Israel has a real partner for peace," Peres said in a statement. "These are significant words ... We must all treat them with the utmost respect."
Peres, a Nobel peace prize laureate, holds a post that is largely ceremonial and he has little influence on the policies of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's right-wing government.
Abbas' comments during a recent interview with Israeli TV caused controversy after some Palestinian political factions accused the president of giving up the right of return for Palestinian refugees.
Abbas was asked by Israel's Channel 2 whether he wanted to live in Safed, his boyhood town in the Galilee region of what had been British-ruled Palestine and is now northern Israel.
"I visited Safed before once. But I want to see Safed. It's my right to see it, but not to live there," Abbas answered, in the interview broadcast on Friday.
"Palestine now for me is '67 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital. This is now and forever ... This is Palestine for me. I am (a ) refugee, but I am living in Ramallah. I believe that (the) West Bank and Gaza is Palestine and the other parts (are) Israel."
PFLP leader Rabah Mhanna responded to the comments by saying that "Abbas doesn't have the right to surrender on these principles ... Abbas with his remarks lives in a dreamland and tries to beg for the American and Israeli position to hope to gain something."
Hamas denounced Abbas, saying he spoke only for himself.
"No Palestinian would accept ceding the right of our people to return to homes, villages and towns from which they were displaced," said Hamas spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri.
"If Abu Mazen (Abbas) does not want Safed, Safed would be honored not to host people like him."
Nimir Hammad, political adviser to the president, responded to the criticisms by saying that Abbas was referring to his project to establish a Palestinian state on the 1967 borders, which Hamas has also indicated that it supports.
The right of return is sanctioned by international law, and the status of refugees after Palestinian independence will be decided in peace talks with Israel, he said.
The last peace talks collapsed in 2010 after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu refused to extend a 10-month partial settlement construction freeze.
Facing possible punitive Israeli and US sanctions, Abbas has promised an immediate return to peace talks after the UN vote, which the Palestinians are likely to win.
Are there no limits to Abbas's shamelessness?
By Khalid Amayreh in the West Bank
Palestinian Authority (PA) leader Mahmoud Abbas never fails to surprise us all, his friends and foes alike.
In an interview with the Israeli television last week, Abbas declared that he had no right to live in Safad, his home-town, from which his family and thousands of other Palestinians were uprooted and expelled in 1948 at the hands of Zionist invaders from Eastern Europe who then occupied more than 75% of historical Palestine, with the active support of Britain and other western powers.
"I visited Safad before once, But I want to see Safad, it is my right to see it, but not to live there," Abbas told the Israeli channel 2, speaking in English from Ramallah in the West Bank.
Abbas said that as far as he was concerned, Palestine included only the West Bank, Gaza Strip and East Jerusalem.
"Palestine for me is the 1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital. This is now and forever. This is Palestine for me. I am a refugee, but I am living in Ramallah. I believe the West Bank and Gaza Strip are Palestine and the other parts are Israel."
Furthermore, Abbas said he wouldn't allow a new intifada or uprising against Israel as long as he remained at the helm of the regime in Ramallah.
Referring to Palestinian resistance against the Israeli military occupation as "terror," Abbas said Palestinians would never start a new intifada under his leadership.
"We don't want to use terror; we don't want to use force. We don't want to use weapons. We want to use diplomacy. We want to use politics and negotiations and peaceful resistance."
Thoroughly demoralized
In his tone of speech, Abbas seemed thoroughly demoralized, having seen the so-called peace process with an irredeemably covetous Israel that is constantly seeking more and more lebensraum at the expense of the Palestinians, torn into smithereens.
In fact, Abbas, a co-engineer of the infamous curse, known as the Oslo agreement, has never stopped trying to sell Palestinians pipe dreams.
We all remember his numerous games of make believe- from his notorious agreement with Yossi Belin to his many theatrical declarations and empty entitlements- (the September entitlement, the road map, the Annapolis conference, etc. etc.).
Now at 76, Abbas realizes that all his hopes, let alone, wishes have evaporated due to Israeli intransigence and arrogance of power.
However, instead of putting up a dignified stance in the face of Israeli insolence, the PA leader is readily groveling at Israel's feet, thinking that Israelis would relent, show magnanimity and give the PLO a viable state on less than 25% of mandatory Palestine.
Interestingly, Abbas's shocking remarks coincided with the annual anniversary of the infamous Balfour Declaration which gave Palestine to Zionism on a silver platter.
Needless to say, the inauspicious coincidence shows that the present PLO leader lacks even the elementary historical consciousness which every Palestinian leader must possess in order to keep the long march toward the ultimate liberation of Palestine going.
We don't want to heap epithets of treason and perfidy on Abbas. After all, the man is not Salahuddin. He is not even Yasser Arafat, who would never give up the sacred right of return, despite the immense pressure the late Palestinian leader reeled under from friend and foe alike, which eventually cost him his life.
None the less, Abu Mazen has gone too far by every conceivable standard of national and Islamic morality, which raises serious question marks about his ability and fitness to remain at the helm of the PA.
A few weeks ago, he told a visiting rabbi in Ramallah that Israel was established in order to stay for ever; The repulsive remark was made in Arabic, which showed that Abbas had little or no respect for the tens of thousands of Palestinian and Arab martyrs and victims who lost their lives in the course of the struggle against Zionist occupiers and oppressors.
And now, he is saying the refugees have no right to repatriation to their homes and villages from which they were expelled at gun point by Zionist terrorists. This is tantamount to a national apostasy. Abbas has no right to say what he said. Palestine is not his family's private commonwealth to cede to Zionism. In fact, the only way he could atone for this blasphemy would be his instant resignation from the chairmanship of the PLO and presidency of the PA. But does he have the moral courage and rectitude to submit his resignation?
Abbas is said to have a Ph.D. in political science. If true, he should be aware of the fact that the right of return is a well-established right in international law as encapsulated in UN Resolution 194.
Indeed, if the Palestinian refugees have no right to repatriation and indemnification in accordance with UN resolution 149, then by the same token, Palestinians should have no right to demand Israeli evacuation from the territories seized by Israel in 1967, pursuant to UN Security Council 242, let alone have a viable state in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.
There is no doubt that Abu Mazen's remarks reflect a great deal of despair, frustration and even depression, in light of Israeli arrogance, America's complicity, and Europe's ineptitude as well as Arab-Muslim weakness.
However, Abbas, his hangers-on and Palestinians in general must internalize the fact that this is a historical conflict that will only end with the demise and ultimate disappearance of this evil entity, known as Israel.
We don't deny that Israel and its allies are currently militarily powerful. We would be blind and utterly foolish if we didn't recognize this outstanding fact.
But political and military realities are not immutable constants; they are rather changeable variables.
The late Sheikh Ahmed Yasin, who was murdered by the Nazis of our time nearly ten years ago, understood this important historical formula. He said "the strong doesn't remain strong for ever, and the weak doesn't remain weak for ever."
Another point. It is really shameful that the bulk of the Fatah leadership has remained silent, refusing to publicly condemn their leader's ignominious words, which really border on national treason.
In fact, some Fatah leaders, including Nimr Hammad and Nabil Abu Rudeina, have sought to distract attention from the latest scandal. One PA operative suggested that Abbas didn't know what he was saying.
Well. If Abbas didn't know what he was saying, then he should retire quietly and stop wreaking more damage to the national cause.
Moreover, the shocking reticence of the Fatah leadership is further evidence that Fatah in its present structure is utterly unfit to lead the Palestinian people to the shore of safety.
And now a few words to the arrogant Zionists, intoxicated by military might and domination over the American government.. You are advised not to give much credence to Abbas' frustrated words. His remarks don't reflect the views of the vast majority of Palestinians.
This is quite perspicuous from the stringent reactions coming from many quarters within the Palestinian community, including from within the PLO itself.
At the very best, his remarks should be construed as another expression of frustration and despair on the part of a demoralized leader who apparently has a hard time making a distinction between pragmatism and capitulation.
"(Abbas's) courageous words prove that Israel has a real partner for peace," Peres said in a statement. "These are significant words ... We must all treat them with the utmost respect."
Peres, a Nobel peace prize laureate, holds a post that is largely ceremonial and he has little influence on the policies of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's right-wing government.
Abbas' comments during a recent interview with Israeli TV caused controversy after some Palestinian political factions accused the president of giving up the right of return for Palestinian refugees.
Abbas was asked by Israel's Channel 2 whether he wanted to live in Safed, his boyhood town in the Galilee region of what had been British-ruled Palestine and is now northern Israel.
"I visited Safed before once. But I want to see Safed. It's my right to see it, but not to live there," Abbas answered, in the interview broadcast on Friday.
"Palestine now for me is '67 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital. This is now and forever ... This is Palestine for me. I am (a ) refugee, but I am living in Ramallah. I believe that (the) West Bank and Gaza is Palestine and the other parts (are) Israel."
PFLP leader Rabah Mhanna responded to the comments by saying that "Abbas doesn't have the right to surrender on these principles ... Abbas with his remarks lives in a dreamland and tries to beg for the American and Israeli position to hope to gain something."
Hamas denounced Abbas, saying he spoke only for himself.
"No Palestinian would accept ceding the right of our people to return to homes, villages and towns from which they were displaced," said Hamas spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri.
"If Abu Mazen (Abbas) does not want Safed, Safed would be honored not to host people like him."
Nimir Hammad, political adviser to the president, responded to the criticisms by saying that Abbas was referring to his project to establish a Palestinian state on the 1967 borders, which Hamas has also indicated that it supports.
The right of return is sanctioned by international law, and the status of refugees after Palestinian independence will be decided in peace talks with Israel, he said.
The last peace talks collapsed in 2010 after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu refused to extend a 10-month partial settlement construction freeze.
Facing possible punitive Israeli and US sanctions, Abbas has promised an immediate return to peace talks after the UN vote, which the Palestinians are likely to win.
Are there no limits to Abbas's shamelessness?
By Khalid Amayreh in the West Bank
Palestinian Authority (PA) leader Mahmoud Abbas never fails to surprise us all, his friends and foes alike.
In an interview with the Israeli television last week, Abbas declared that he had no right to live in Safad, his home-town, from which his family and thousands of other Palestinians were uprooted and expelled in 1948 at the hands of Zionist invaders from Eastern Europe who then occupied more than 75% of historical Palestine, with the active support of Britain and other western powers.
"I visited Safad before once, But I want to see Safad, it is my right to see it, but not to live there," Abbas told the Israeli channel 2, speaking in English from Ramallah in the West Bank.
Abbas said that as far as he was concerned, Palestine included only the West Bank, Gaza Strip and East Jerusalem.
"Palestine for me is the 1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital. This is now and forever. This is Palestine for me. I am a refugee, but I am living in Ramallah. I believe the West Bank and Gaza Strip are Palestine and the other parts are Israel."
Furthermore, Abbas said he wouldn't allow a new intifada or uprising against Israel as long as he remained at the helm of the regime in Ramallah.
Referring to Palestinian resistance against the Israeli military occupation as "terror," Abbas said Palestinians would never start a new intifada under his leadership.
"We don't want to use terror; we don't want to use force. We don't want to use weapons. We want to use diplomacy. We want to use politics and negotiations and peaceful resistance."
Thoroughly demoralized
In his tone of speech, Abbas seemed thoroughly demoralized, having seen the so-called peace process with an irredeemably covetous Israel that is constantly seeking more and more lebensraum at the expense of the Palestinians, torn into smithereens.
In fact, Abbas, a co-engineer of the infamous curse, known as the Oslo agreement, has never stopped trying to sell Palestinians pipe dreams.
We all remember his numerous games of make believe- from his notorious agreement with Yossi Belin to his many theatrical declarations and empty entitlements- (the September entitlement, the road map, the Annapolis conference, etc. etc.).
Now at 76, Abbas realizes that all his hopes, let alone, wishes have evaporated due to Israeli intransigence and arrogance of power.
However, instead of putting up a dignified stance in the face of Israeli insolence, the PA leader is readily groveling at Israel's feet, thinking that Israelis would relent, show magnanimity and give the PLO a viable state on less than 25% of mandatory Palestine.
Interestingly, Abbas's shocking remarks coincided with the annual anniversary of the infamous Balfour Declaration which gave Palestine to Zionism on a silver platter.
Needless to say, the inauspicious coincidence shows that the present PLO leader lacks even the elementary historical consciousness which every Palestinian leader must possess in order to keep the long march toward the ultimate liberation of Palestine going.
We don't want to heap epithets of treason and perfidy on Abbas. After all, the man is not Salahuddin. He is not even Yasser Arafat, who would never give up the sacred right of return, despite the immense pressure the late Palestinian leader reeled under from friend and foe alike, which eventually cost him his life.
None the less, Abu Mazen has gone too far by every conceivable standard of national and Islamic morality, which raises serious question marks about his ability and fitness to remain at the helm of the PA.
A few weeks ago, he told a visiting rabbi in Ramallah that Israel was established in order to stay for ever; The repulsive remark was made in Arabic, which showed that Abbas had little or no respect for the tens of thousands of Palestinian and Arab martyrs and victims who lost their lives in the course of the struggle against Zionist occupiers and oppressors.
And now, he is saying the refugees have no right to repatriation to their homes and villages from which they were expelled at gun point by Zionist terrorists. This is tantamount to a national apostasy. Abbas has no right to say what he said. Palestine is not his family's private commonwealth to cede to Zionism. In fact, the only way he could atone for this blasphemy would be his instant resignation from the chairmanship of the PLO and presidency of the PA. But does he have the moral courage and rectitude to submit his resignation?
Abbas is said to have a Ph.D. in political science. If true, he should be aware of the fact that the right of return is a well-established right in international law as encapsulated in UN Resolution 194.
Indeed, if the Palestinian refugees have no right to repatriation and indemnification in accordance with UN resolution 149, then by the same token, Palestinians should have no right to demand Israeli evacuation from the territories seized by Israel in 1967, pursuant to UN Security Council 242, let alone have a viable state in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.
There is no doubt that Abu Mazen's remarks reflect a great deal of despair, frustration and even depression, in light of Israeli arrogance, America's complicity, and Europe's ineptitude as well as Arab-Muslim weakness.
However, Abbas, his hangers-on and Palestinians in general must internalize the fact that this is a historical conflict that will only end with the demise and ultimate disappearance of this evil entity, known as Israel.
We don't deny that Israel and its allies are currently militarily powerful. We would be blind and utterly foolish if we didn't recognize this outstanding fact.
But political and military realities are not immutable constants; they are rather changeable variables.
The late Sheikh Ahmed Yasin, who was murdered by the Nazis of our time nearly ten years ago, understood this important historical formula. He said "the strong doesn't remain strong for ever, and the weak doesn't remain weak for ever."
Another point. It is really shameful that the bulk of the Fatah leadership has remained silent, refusing to publicly condemn their leader's ignominious words, which really border on national treason.
In fact, some Fatah leaders, including Nimr Hammad and Nabil Abu Rudeina, have sought to distract attention from the latest scandal. One PA operative suggested that Abbas didn't know what he was saying.
Well. If Abbas didn't know what he was saying, then he should retire quietly and stop wreaking more damage to the national cause.
Moreover, the shocking reticence of the Fatah leadership is further evidence that Fatah in its present structure is utterly unfit to lead the Palestinian people to the shore of safety.
And now a few words to the arrogant Zionists, intoxicated by military might and domination over the American government.. You are advised not to give much credence to Abbas' frustrated words. His remarks don't reflect the views of the vast majority of Palestinians.
This is quite perspicuous from the stringent reactions coming from many quarters within the Palestinian community, including from within the PLO itself.
At the very best, his remarks should be construed as another expression of frustration and despair on the part of a demoralized leader who apparently has a hard time making a distinction between pragmatism and capitulation.
ADU: Abbas’s statements shocking
CAIRO, (PIC)-- The Quds committee in the Arab Doctors Union criticized the recent statement of Mahmoud Abbas, the PA chief, in which he renounced the right of return for millions of Palestinian refugees.
Director of the committee Jamal Abdul Salam said in a statement on Saturday that the Palestinian people’s sacrifices for the sake of attaining their rights and right of return to their usurped homeland could not be forsaken by irresponsible statements by a president whose term in office had expired.
Abbas relinquished the right of six million refugees to return to their land while in fact this right none is entitled to forsake alone, Abdul Salam said, adding that it was the single right of each and every refugee that was guaranteed by the international law.
The director described Abbas’s statement as shocking.
Abbas had told an Israeli TV channel that Palestine was only the West Bank and Gaza and the rest was Israel.
Resheq slams Abbas for his antinational TV remarks
DOHA, (PIC)-- Member of Hamas's political bureau Ezzat Al-Resheq strongly denounced de facto president Mahmoud Abbas for the remarks he made on Friday in an Israeli TV interview in which he renounced the Palestinians' right of return and many other national constants.
Resheq told Quds Press that Abbas's remarks were reprehensible and did not represent the Palestinian people in any way.
"No one has the right to compromise the Palestinian rights and cede any of them," the Hamas official stressed.
"Nobody, whoever he is, has the right to waive the right of return; the Palestinian refugees' right to return to their homes, cities and villages they have been expelled from is a sacred inalienable right," he added.
"Our people will never cede a single soil grain of the Palestinian land from the river to the sea, and Abbas's remarks were not only traumatic for the Palestinians but also for the Arab peoples who have always expressed their solidarity with Palestine and the Palestinian cause," the official emphasized.
In an interview given to an Israeli television station, Mahmoud Abbas relinquished the Palestinian refugees' right to return to their lands and homes, especially his return to his birth town Safad, now a district in northern Israel.
"It is my right to see it [Safad], but not to live there," Abbas said. "I believe that the West Bank and Gaza is Palestine, and the other parts are Israel," he added.
He also reiterated his vow to prevent and quell a third Palestinian popular uprising against what he described as the state of Israel.
Many Palestinian noted figures including head of the Palestinian return center in the UK Majed Al-Zeer condemned Abbas's remarks as a disgrace in the Palestinian history.
Zeer said such remarks vindicated further that Abbas is no longer eligible to represent the Palestinian people's will and defend their rights.
He also called on all Palestinian factions to delegitimize Abbas and revoke the political authority given to him.
"Aka, Jaffa and Haifa are all Palestinian cities which the Palestinians did not renounce and should get them back; these are uncompromisable rights," head of the center added.
For his part, senior official of the popular front for the liberation of Palestine Maher Al-Taher said the right of return is the essence of the Palestinian cause and any tendency to waive a grain of the Palestinian soil does not reflect the Palestinian people's aspirations.
"The Palestinian people will not give up their land and soil including Haifa, Aka, Nazareth and Lod and will continue struggling and resisting to liberate their land, so any statements claiming that Palestine is the West Bank, Gaza and east of Jerusalem does not reflect the Palestinian people's will," Taher told Quds Press.
"Palestine, as stated in the charter of the Palestine liberation organization, is from the sea to the river," he added.
MP Halaiqa: Abbas lost legitimacy
AL-KHALIL, (PIC)-- Samira Halaiqa, MP for Hamas movement, condemned remarks made by PA President Mahmoud Abbas to an Israeli TV channel.
Halaiqa confirmed that Abbas' remarks regarding the right of return and giving up the 1948- occupied territories "represent explicit reflection of the negotiations-based approach that he has been adopting."
She told Quds Press agency on Saturday that Mahmoud Abbas "conflicted with the Palestinian national consensus as his statements show an apparent surrender of the right to return, although the charters of all the factions have been affirming the right of return and armed resistance until the liberation of all the Palestinian territories."
Halaiqa demanded the Palestinian factions and political leaders to decide whether the Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas is fit to lead this people, and stressed that "these remarks cost Abbas to lose his eligibility to lead the Palestinian people."
The Palestinian MP said that Abbas and other Palestinian leaders do not have the right to surrender on these principles "to which martyrs and wounded paid their blood as a price".
Abbas was asked by Israel's Channel 2 TV whether he wanted to live in Safad, his boyhood town in the Galilee region.
"I visited Safad before once. But I want to see Safad. It's my right to see it, but not to live there," Abbas answered.
"Palestine now for me is '67 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital. This is now and forever ... This is Palestine for me. I am (a ) refugee, but I am living in Ramallah. I believe that (the) West Bank and Gaza is Palestine and the other parts (are) Israel", said PA chairman.
Alliance of Palestinian Forces in Lebanon denounces Abbas' serious remarks
BEIRUT, (PIC)-- The Alliance of Palestinian Forces in Lebanon denounced remarks by PA chairman Mahmoud Abbas regarding the right of return, and his rejection of a third Intifada.
It said in a press statement: "The remarks made by Abbas only reflect his position, and do not represent the Palestinian people and the national and Islamic factions."
The Alliance affirmed its adherence to the right of return of Palestinian refugees "to their hometown; Palestine" noting that neither Abbas nor any other party or organization have the right to surrender this right.
The Alliance also confirmed its adherence to armed resistance as a strategic option for the Palestinian people and as a natural right to confront the Israeli occupation and liberate all the Palestinian territories.
The Alliance warned of what it called, "continuation of making concessions to the Zionist enemy," noting that the negotiations and compromises have failed throughout 21 years. Palestinians can only regain their rights through resistance, it added.
Director of the committee Jamal Abdul Salam said in a statement on Saturday that the Palestinian people’s sacrifices for the sake of attaining their rights and right of return to their usurped homeland could not be forsaken by irresponsible statements by a president whose term in office had expired.
Abbas relinquished the right of six million refugees to return to their land while in fact this right none is entitled to forsake alone, Abdul Salam said, adding that it was the single right of each and every refugee that was guaranteed by the international law.
The director described Abbas’s statement as shocking.
Abbas had told an Israeli TV channel that Palestine was only the West Bank and Gaza and the rest was Israel.
Resheq slams Abbas for his antinational TV remarks
DOHA, (PIC)-- Member of Hamas's political bureau Ezzat Al-Resheq strongly denounced de facto president Mahmoud Abbas for the remarks he made on Friday in an Israeli TV interview in which he renounced the Palestinians' right of return and many other national constants.
Resheq told Quds Press that Abbas's remarks were reprehensible and did not represent the Palestinian people in any way.
"No one has the right to compromise the Palestinian rights and cede any of them," the Hamas official stressed.
"Nobody, whoever he is, has the right to waive the right of return; the Palestinian refugees' right to return to their homes, cities and villages they have been expelled from is a sacred inalienable right," he added.
"Our people will never cede a single soil grain of the Palestinian land from the river to the sea, and Abbas's remarks were not only traumatic for the Palestinians but also for the Arab peoples who have always expressed their solidarity with Palestine and the Palestinian cause," the official emphasized.
In an interview given to an Israeli television station, Mahmoud Abbas relinquished the Palestinian refugees' right to return to their lands and homes, especially his return to his birth town Safad, now a district in northern Israel.
"It is my right to see it [Safad], but not to live there," Abbas said. "I believe that the West Bank and Gaza is Palestine, and the other parts are Israel," he added.
He also reiterated his vow to prevent and quell a third Palestinian popular uprising against what he described as the state of Israel.
Many Palestinian noted figures including head of the Palestinian return center in the UK Majed Al-Zeer condemned Abbas's remarks as a disgrace in the Palestinian history.
Zeer said such remarks vindicated further that Abbas is no longer eligible to represent the Palestinian people's will and defend their rights.
He also called on all Palestinian factions to delegitimize Abbas and revoke the political authority given to him.
"Aka, Jaffa and Haifa are all Palestinian cities which the Palestinians did not renounce and should get them back; these are uncompromisable rights," head of the center added.
For his part, senior official of the popular front for the liberation of Palestine Maher Al-Taher said the right of return is the essence of the Palestinian cause and any tendency to waive a grain of the Palestinian soil does not reflect the Palestinian people's aspirations.
"The Palestinian people will not give up their land and soil including Haifa, Aka, Nazareth and Lod and will continue struggling and resisting to liberate their land, so any statements claiming that Palestine is the West Bank, Gaza and east of Jerusalem does not reflect the Palestinian people's will," Taher told Quds Press.
"Palestine, as stated in the charter of the Palestine liberation organization, is from the sea to the river," he added.
MP Halaiqa: Abbas lost legitimacy
AL-KHALIL, (PIC)-- Samira Halaiqa, MP for Hamas movement, condemned remarks made by PA President Mahmoud Abbas to an Israeli TV channel.
Halaiqa confirmed that Abbas' remarks regarding the right of return and giving up the 1948- occupied territories "represent explicit reflection of the negotiations-based approach that he has been adopting."
She told Quds Press agency on Saturday that Mahmoud Abbas "conflicted with the Palestinian national consensus as his statements show an apparent surrender of the right to return, although the charters of all the factions have been affirming the right of return and armed resistance until the liberation of all the Palestinian territories."
Halaiqa demanded the Palestinian factions and political leaders to decide whether the Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas is fit to lead this people, and stressed that "these remarks cost Abbas to lose his eligibility to lead the Palestinian people."
The Palestinian MP said that Abbas and other Palestinian leaders do not have the right to surrender on these principles "to which martyrs and wounded paid their blood as a price".
Abbas was asked by Israel's Channel 2 TV whether he wanted to live in Safad, his boyhood town in the Galilee region.
"I visited Safad before once. But I want to see Safad. It's my right to see it, but not to live there," Abbas answered.
"Palestine now for me is '67 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital. This is now and forever ... This is Palestine for me. I am (a ) refugee, but I am living in Ramallah. I believe that (the) West Bank and Gaza is Palestine and the other parts (are) Israel", said PA chairman.
Alliance of Palestinian Forces in Lebanon denounces Abbas' serious remarks
BEIRUT, (PIC)-- The Alliance of Palestinian Forces in Lebanon denounced remarks by PA chairman Mahmoud Abbas regarding the right of return, and his rejection of a third Intifada.
It said in a press statement: "The remarks made by Abbas only reflect his position, and do not represent the Palestinian people and the national and Islamic factions."
The Alliance affirmed its adherence to the right of return of Palestinian refugees "to their hometown; Palestine" noting that neither Abbas nor any other party or organization have the right to surrender this right.
The Alliance also confirmed its adherence to armed resistance as a strategic option for the Palestinian people and as a natural right to confront the Israeli occupation and liberate all the Palestinian territories.
The Alliance warned of what it called, "continuation of making concessions to the Zionist enemy," noting that the negotiations and compromises have failed throughout 21 years. Palestinians can only regain their rights through resistance, it added.
Demonstration at British embassy in Cairo to condemn Balfour Declaration
CAIRO, (PIC)-- Scores of supporters of the Arab Nasserite Party organized on Friday a march from the party headquarters in Talaat Harb Street towards the British embassy to condemn the Balfour Declaration.
Members of the party expressed their rejection of the Balfour Declaration and the Israeli occupation violations against the Palestinian people and the Islamic holy sites in Palestine.
The demonstrators torched the Israeli flag and raised banners condemning the continued settlement policy adopted by the occupation in Jerusalem and other Palestinian territories.
They also urged all Egyptians to struggle until achieving the liberation of Jerusalem and the occupied Palestinian territories.
Members of the party expressed their rejection of the Balfour Declaration and the Israeli occupation violations against the Palestinian people and the Islamic holy sites in Palestine.
The demonstrators torched the Israeli flag and raised banners condemning the continued settlement policy adopted by the occupation in Jerusalem and other Palestinian territories.
They also urged all Egyptians to struggle until achieving the liberation of Jerusalem and the occupied Palestinian territories.
1 nov 2012
Abbas tells Israeli TV: No intifada on my watch
JERUSALEM (Reuters) -- President Mahmoud Abbas assured Israelis that he will not allow a new uprising against the occupation, in an interview with Israel's Channel 2 TV on Thursday.
Some Israeli government officials have voiced skepticism about Abbas's ability to deliver a peace accord, after he lost control of Gaza to Hamas in a brief civil war in 2007.
Abbas sought to play up his security control over Palestinian-run areas of the West Bank, saying that as long as he was in power "there will no armed, third armed Intifada (revolt against Israel). Never."
(First video, most in English, second video in English)
Some Israeli government officials have voiced skepticism about Abbas's ability to deliver a peace accord, after he lost control of Gaza to Hamas in a brief civil war in 2007.
Abbas sought to play up his security control over Palestinian-run areas of the West Bank, saying that as long as he was in power "there will no armed, third armed Intifada (revolt against Israel). Never."
(First video, most in English, second video in English)
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"We don't want to use terror. We don't want to use force. We don't want to use weapons. We want to use diplomacy. We want to use politics. We want to use negotiations. We want to use peaceful resistance. That's it."
Abbas was also regarded as making a symbolic concession to Israel, saying he had no permanent claim on the town from which he was driven as a child during the 1948 war to found Israel.
Speaking to the top-rated Israeli television newscast, Abbas was asked whether he wanted to live in Safed, his boyhood town in the Galilee region of what had been British-ruled Palestine and is now northern Israel.
"I visited Safed before once. But I want to see Safed. It's my right to see it, but not to live there," Abbas told Channel 2, speaking in English from the West Bank city of Ramallah.
"Palestine now for me is '67 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital. This is now and forever ... This is Palestine for me. I am (a Palestinian refugees demand that as many as five million of their compatriots be granted the right to return to lands in Israel that they fled or were driven from in 1948.
Israel rules this out, and argues the refugees should resettle in a future Palestinian state in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, territories it occupied in the 1967 war.
Ceding the right of return?
In Gaza, Hamas denounced Abbas, saying he spoke only for himself.
"No Palestinian would accept ceding the right of our people to return to homes, villages and towns from which they were displaced," said Hamas spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri.
"If Abu Mazen (Abbas) does not want Safed, Safed would be honored not to host people like him."
Palestinian memoranda leaked to the media last year showed that Abbas had, during talks with the previous, centrist Israeli government, been willing to concede on some core demands -- including by accepting a cap on refugees admitted to Israel.
The televised remarks also appeared aimed at influencing Israelis ahead of their Jan. 22 legislative election.
Polls currently predict an easy win for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, a rightist who says he wants to restart talks with Abbas but who has championed Jewish settlement of East Jerusalem and the West Bank. Abbas says he cannot negotiate while continuous settlement building eats up land needed for an independent Palestinian state.
Netanyahu's office had no immediate comment on the interview, which was aired as the prime minister returned from a visit to France.
Paul Hirschson, a spokesman for Israel's Foreign Ministry, said the onus remained on Abbas to return to negotiations:
"If he (Abbas) wants to see Safed, or anywhere else in Israel, for that matter, we would happily show him anywhere. But there has to be a desire to move forward on the peace process."
As Abbas is not an Israeli citizen, Hirschson added, "he doesn't have a right to live in Israel. We agree on that.") refugee, but I am living in Ramallah. I believe that (the) West Bank and Gaza is Palestine and the other parts (are) Israel."
Abbas was also regarded as making a symbolic concession to Israel, saying he had no permanent claim on the town from which he was driven as a child during the 1948 war to found Israel.
Speaking to the top-rated Israeli television newscast, Abbas was asked whether he wanted to live in Safed, his boyhood town in the Galilee region of what had been British-ruled Palestine and is now northern Israel.
"I visited Safed before once. But I want to see Safed. It's my right to see it, but not to live there," Abbas told Channel 2, speaking in English from the West Bank city of Ramallah.
"Palestine now for me is '67 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital. This is now and forever ... This is Palestine for me. I am (a Palestinian refugees demand that as many as five million of their compatriots be granted the right to return to lands in Israel that they fled or were driven from in 1948.
Israel rules this out, and argues the refugees should resettle in a future Palestinian state in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, territories it occupied in the 1967 war.
Ceding the right of return?
In Gaza, Hamas denounced Abbas, saying he spoke only for himself.
"No Palestinian would accept ceding the right of our people to return to homes, villages and towns from which they were displaced," said Hamas spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri.
"If Abu Mazen (Abbas) does not want Safed, Safed would be honored not to host people like him."
Palestinian memoranda leaked to the media last year showed that Abbas had, during talks with the previous, centrist Israeli government, been willing to concede on some core demands -- including by accepting a cap on refugees admitted to Israel.
The televised remarks also appeared aimed at influencing Israelis ahead of their Jan. 22 legislative election.
Polls currently predict an easy win for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, a rightist who says he wants to restart talks with Abbas but who has championed Jewish settlement of East Jerusalem and the West Bank. Abbas says he cannot negotiate while continuous settlement building eats up land needed for an independent Palestinian state.
Netanyahu's office had no immediate comment on the interview, which was aired as the prime minister returned from a visit to France.
Paul Hirschson, a spokesman for Israel's Foreign Ministry, said the onus remained on Abbas to return to negotiations:
"If he (Abbas) wants to see Safed, or anywhere else in Israel, for that matter, we would happily show him anywhere. But there has to be a desire to move forward on the peace process."
As Abbas is not an Israeli citizen, Hirschson added, "he doesn't have a right to live in Israel. We agree on that.") refugee, but I am living in Ramallah. I believe that (the) West Bank and Gaza is Palestine and the other parts (are) Israel."
Hamas holds Britain responsible for the suffering of Palestinian refugees
BEIRUT, (PIC)-- The refugees department in Hamas movement held Britain politically and morally responsible for the suffering of the Palestinian people.
The department in a statement on Thursday on the occasion on the 95th anniversary of the Balfour Declaration, said that Britain, with this notorious pledge to secure a homeland for Jews in Palestine, bears responsibility for all calamities, massacres, and forced displacement of the Palestinian people.
It called for rightful compensation for the Palestinians for their lost property, for their forced eviction, and for the massacres committed against them, and called their return to their homeland.
The department said that the Balfour Declaration was the direct cause of the creation of Israel. Hence, whatever was built on this unacceptable Declaration is null and void, it added.
The department said that the Palestinian people are fully entitled to regain their usurped rights using all means including resistance since the usurpation of their land and rights was made using military force.
The department in a statement on Thursday on the occasion on the 95th anniversary of the Balfour Declaration, said that Britain, with this notorious pledge to secure a homeland for Jews in Palestine, bears responsibility for all calamities, massacres, and forced displacement of the Palestinian people.
It called for rightful compensation for the Palestinians for their lost property, for their forced eviction, and for the massacres committed against them, and called their return to their homeland.
The department said that the Balfour Declaration was the direct cause of the creation of Israel. Hence, whatever was built on this unacceptable Declaration is null and void, it added.
The department said that the Palestinian people are fully entitled to regain their usurped rights using all means including resistance since the usurpation of their land and rights was made using military force.
More to come soon
