Abbas: Israel imposes ‘apartheid regime’ based on one-state

Israel is imposing its “apartheid regime” on the Palestinian people based on its governance of the area as “one-state”, Palestinian Authority (PA) President Mahmoud Abbas told leaders at the Arab League summit yesterday.

Abbas said he agreed with the American administration and hoped to move forward to “making peace”. “We welcomed this, but on the basis of the solution based on the 1967 borders and the international resolutions in order to have two states living side by side with peace and safety.”

[Israel must] give up the idea that security is achieved through grabbing more land, end its occupation and stop depriving Palestinians from achieving their independence on their land [if it] wants to be a peace partner in the region and live peacefully with its neighbours.

The PA leader also reiterated that the Palestinians have always proved their “flexibility” and “positively approached” any international initiative aimed at solving the Palestinian issue,

but the Israeli governments have been undermining the two-state solution, accelerating settlement and grabbing lands since 2009.

Regarding Jerusalem, Abbas warned that Israel “is going ahead in its plans aiming to annex East Jerusalem,” noting that Tel aviv is also “trying to change its identity and showing disrespect for its historical status which include Islamic and Christian holy sites.”

He rejected any change in the Arab Peace Initiative and called for making 2017 a year to put the Palestinian cause on “a track that accelerates ending the Israeli occupation of the land of the State of Palestinian.”

Abbas went on to call on the UK not to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the Balfour Declaration, stressing that it should “apologise” for this “historical mistake” and officially recognise the State of Palestine.