Al-Zahar demands for Palestinian factions to unite to confront the negotiations

The head of the political committee of the Palestinian Legislative Council, Mahmoud Al-Zahar, has demanded for the various Palestinian factions to form a strong and organised front in face of the ongoing negotiations, which he described as “futile”.

Al-Zahar’s call came during a hearing that was held by the Legislative Council, headed by First Deputy Ahmed Bahr, on Thursday to find out the latest developments related to the Palestinian cause, particularly with regard to the negotiations and their implications for the future of Palestine.

Al-Zahar said: “The negotiator has unjustly waived 80 per cent of Palestinian land,” stressing that “Palestine – from its rivers to its seas – is holy land, and nobody has the right to waive any inch of it.”

He explained that there are various conditions that need to be met “for the negotiator to be able to speak on behalf of the people, the most important of which are experience, intelligence and awareness of the national requirements,” adding out that the current Palestinian negotiator “lacks all of those conditions”.

During his speech, Al-Zahar touched upon the right of return, stressing that it is “an individual right that cannot be waived by the negotiator,” and also noting that “President Mahmoud Abbas has bargained with the occupation at the expense of the Palestinians in the diaspora.”

Al-Zahar called on the Palestinian people to take the lead and to rebel in the face of all those who have sold the land and human beings without a price.

He argued that while the Arab states and peoples are concerning themselves about their domestic affairs, the Palestinian leadership has persisted even more with its “sterile” negotiation project, thus he demanded for the Arab League to take a decisive position towards the negotiations dossier.

He also talked about the suffering of the Palestinians in the occupied West Bank, Jerusalem and the 1948 occupied territories, calling for the need to stand by them in all possible ways.