Apple News Facebook Twitter 新浪微博 Instagram YouTube Friday, May 10, 2024
Search
Archive
English>>

Palestine slams U.S.-brokered agreement between Israel, UAE

(Xinhua)    08:39, August 14, 2020

Palestine on Thursday slammed the peace agreement reached between the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Israel under U.S. sponsorship.

The Palestinian presidency described the agreement as "disgraceful," considering it a "blow to the Arab Peace Initiative and the decisions of the Arab and Islamic summits, and an aggression against the Palestinian people."

The presidency recalled its ambassador to Abu Dhabi over the move.

In a televised statement following an urgent leadership meeting chaired by Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, the presidency said it rejected linking the suspension of the Israeli annexation plan to any normalization of relations between Israel with the UAE or any other nation.

The presidency statement warned the rest of the Arab countries against "bowing" to U.S. pressure and following in the footsteps of the UAE, saying it provides "free normalization with the Israeli occupation at the expense of Palestinian rights."

"The Palestinian leadership rejects what the United Arab Emirates has done and considers it a betrayal of Jerusalem, the Al-Aqsa Mosque and the Palestinian cause. This deal is a de facto recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel," said Abbas's spokesperson Nabil Abu Rudeineh.

Member of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) Executive Committee Hanan Ashrawi said the UAE has come forward with its "secret dealings/normalization with Israel."

"Israel got rewarded for not declaring openly what it has been doing to Palestine illegally and persistently since the beginning of the occupation," Hanan Ashrawi wrote on Twitter.

"Please don't do us a favor. We are nobody's fig leaf!" she wrote.

Meanwhile, Hazem Qassem, spokesperson for the Islamic Hamas movement in Gaza Strip said that his movement condemns the agreement because it "encourages the occupation to continue its denial of the rights of our Palestinian people."

"What happened today between the Emirates and Israel is precisely the weakening of the ability of resistance and confrontation," he said.

Islamic Jihad Movement in Gaza said in a press statement that the deal is considered "surrender and submission," but it would "not change the facts of the conflict, but rather allow the occupation to persist."

Palestinian president's Fatah party urged Arab states to "take punitive measures against the Emirati step."

"Normalization with Israel encourages and rewards the occupation," said Fatah party Central Committee Member Jamal Muhaisen in a press statement.

Other Palestinian factions, including the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, The Palestinian People's Party, the Palestinian Struggle Front issued condemnation statements.

Relations between Palestine and the UAE have been strained in recent years, but tensions between the two sides peaked after a UAE plane landed at Israeli Ben Gurion airport carrying medical supplies for Palestinians, which the Palestinian government rejected.

Israel and the UAE have reached an agreement, brokered by the U.S., to work towards a "full normalization of relations."

Under the agreement, Israel said it has agreed to suspend the annexation of Palestinian lands in the occupied West Bank, while it focuses on expanding ties with other Arab countries.

(For the latest China news, Please follow People's Daily on Twitter and Facebook)(Web editor: Xian Jiangnan, Bianji)

We Recommend

Most Read

Key Words