Abbas: Our people ‘will rise from under the rubble to rebuild’

Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas wraps up his virtual speech the UN General Assembly by declaring that Palestinians will remain on their lands, despite Israeli efforts to remove them.

“Our people will remain rooted like the olive trees. Firm as the rocks, we will rise from under the rubble to rebuild,” Abbas says.

“No matter how much our wounds bleed, and no matter how long this suffering lasts, it will not break our will to live and survive.”

“We want to live in freedom, security and peace, like all other people on earth, in an independent, sovereign state on the borders of 1967 with East Jerusalem as our capital in security and peace with our neighbors,” he said.

“Peace cannot be achieved if justice is not achieved, and there can be no justice if Palestine is not freed,” Abbas continued, adding “the time has come for the international community to do right by the Palestinian people, so that they may obtain their legitimate rights to be rid of the occupation and to not remain hostage to the temperament of Israeli politics.”

Earlier, Abbas stated that Israel has “imposed a stifling siege on an entire people,” describing it as “not merely an act of aggression, but a war crime and a crime against humanity.” In the West Bank, he said, “Israel continues to illegally expand its settlements.” He added that Palestine rejects and “completely deplores” any plans for a so-called “Greater Israel.”

Abbas was forced to join the session virtually after the United States denied him a visa, barring his entry to New York despite America’s obligations as UN host country. On 19 September, the UN General Assembly overwhelmingly rejected Washington’s stance, passing a resolution that allowed him to participate by video. The vote was decisive—145 in favor versus just five opposed, with only the United States, Israel, Nauru, Palau, and Paraguay siding against.

©TNPP