Abbas Supports HH the Emir's Proposal to Form International Investigation Committee

Doha, February 26 (QNA) - Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas expressed his support to the proposal, presented today by HH the Emir Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani to go to the UN Security Council to adopt a resolution for the formation of an international investigation committee to investigate all the actions taken by Israel since the 1967 occupation of Arab Jerusalem in order to obliterate the Islamic and Arab landmarks. Addressing the opening session of the Doha International Conference for the Defense of Al-Quds which began its work here today, President Mahmoud Abbas expressed thanks and appreciation to His Highness the Emir for hosting this important conference in Doha. Abbas explained that this Conference is held in a very delicate stage, relating to the capital and beating heart of Palestine (Al-Quds), and the challenges and dangers which are not allowed to be ignored anymore. Providing adequate answers to such challenges facing Al-Quds is a big responsibility which needs the adopting of policies and providing the potentials to insure the success in maintaining its Arab and Christian-Muslim character, Abbas said. Abbas also noted that the Israeli occupation authorities accelerate in an unprecedented way and by using the most dangerous means in implementing plans to obliterate the Arab and Christian-Muslim character of Jerusalem, in order to Judaize it. The Palestinian President in his speech explained that the Israeli occupation authority's attempts to achieve the ultimate goal of these plans in Jerusalem have three axes. The first is that they are working to change the character and structure of Jerusalem, believing that they can remove the name of Al-Quds from the memory of the world. In this context, Abbas said that Al-Quds is witnessing an unprecedented acceleration in the case of settlement, where there are working to fabricate the details of the artificial scene of Jerusalem, contrary to its architectural characteristics and its cultural roots. Since the occupation authorities removed the Mughrabi neighborhood after the 1967 war in the Old City of Jerusalem, Israel still demolishing Palestinian homes that carry historical symbolic such Karm al Mufti and others, and building settlements in more than one site on lands confiscated from the citizens of the holy city, Abbas underlined. Abbas noted also to the Apartheid Wall and the settlements in order to isolate the city from its surroundings in the West Bank, and to prevent as well the communication between north and south of the West. Palestinian President said the second axis of the plans of the Israeli occupation in the city of Jerusalem is completing the ethnic cleansing plan, where the occupation began on its first day in 1967 in implementing the scheme to force merchants, owners of business and the Palestinian citizens to leave their city through imposing high taxes associated with punitive measures. He emphasized that what is implemented by the Israeli occupation authorities is an ethnic cleansing against Palestinian citizens, to make them a minority in their city with a resident status only. The Palestinian President explained that the third axis is the Occupation Authorities' endeavour to impoverish the holy city, destroy its infrastructure and undermine its economic resources. He said, Jerusalem has always been, through all ages in history, a centre of prosperity with thriving economic, medical, and educational and tourism activity as well as embracing cultural, intellectual and artistic work in Palestine. To achieve that end the Occupation Authorities closed the headquarters of many of the Palestinian institutions, like the East House, the headquarters of professional and workers' trade unions, the Chamber of Commerce, which was founded in the 1930s of the last century before the Palestine 'Nakba' (exodus) and the creation of the State of Israel in 1948, Abbas said. He said the Occupation Authorities also refuse to grant licenses to construct hospitals, universities, schools, hotels, apartments, shopping centres. They have passed laws and taken measures to control the movement of foreign tourists to keep them away from the city's hotels owned by Palestinians. He pointed out the most serious measure, apart from surrounding Jerusalem with a series of settlements in order to separate it from the rest of the West Bank, is the Occupation Authorities' setting up permanent barriers since the 1990s, which prevents Palestinian citizens from entering Jerusalem whether for prayers, work, medical treatment, study, shopping or for visiting their relatives and families without permits which are almost impossible to obtain. The Palestinian President went on to say that this measures have led to what we can compare with "the stopping of the flow of blood from arteries to the heart" because Jerusalem throughout its history had been receiving on daily basis tens of thousands of other Palestinian cities' citizens, who used to flock to the holy places, markets, schools, hospitals and workshops. He said the Occupation Authorities aim to deprive Jerusalem of playing its historical and religious role. They wanted to cancel its excellence as an avant-garde civilization and world centre which did not stop even one day from contributing to human civilization and enriching it. Their design aimed to reduce it to an old and decrepit neighbourhoods, deserted mosques and churches, empty markets and streets and wanted to take the pearl of Palestine and the flower of its cities centuries back. President Abbas underlined the need to support the steadfastness of Jerusalemites, the defenders of the holy city, stressing that they would challenge the grave circumstances facing them and would live in their city to protect Al Aqsa mosque and the city's churches. The Palestinian President stressed the need to implement all plans and projects which aim to help save Jerusalem. To this end, we agreed with the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), which adopted the plans on Jerusalem, that we work together so that able Arab and Islamic countries could adopt one sectors of those needed to enhance the steadfastness of our people in Jerusalem such as health, education, housing, infrastructure, trade, economy, culture and religious sites, Abbas said. He said he met with the Secretary General of the OIC Dr. Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu. "We have an agreement on the plan and mechanisms to implement this. Dr. Ihsanoglu will personally follow up the implementation of this plan which we hope would serve to strengthen the steadfastness of our people in Jerusalem,'' he added. Abbas lauded the document on Jerusalem announced by Grand Sheikh of Al Azhar days before the conclusion of the Cairo Jerusalem Conference for the clear vision it contained and for the plans and activities it proposed. He stressed that any work we do is based on the centrality of Jerusalem for the Palestinian cause adding that ''out of this comes our adherence to our principal position of not to resume negotiations as long as the Occupation Authorities do not fulfill their commitments to halt all settlement activity, particularly in Jerusalem''. Abbas underscored the need to work on several axes, the first of which being that Jerusalem must be the core issue in the political and economic relations between the Arab and Muslim and rest of the world. He also called for developing a unified plan of action with the different Christian churches which are concerned with preserving churches as places of worship rather than being touristic attractions "as there are tens of thousands of faithful Christian who perform pilgrimage to the Holy Land every year". The other contentious issue was the so-called annexation of Jerusalem by Israel through a law enacted by them on June 27, 1976. "This law is null and void because Jerusalem is the eternal capital of Palestine," he said. The second topic discussions centered on strengthening the infrastructure of the community in Jerusalem by adopting projects to support institutions and other projects in the Holy City. "Towards this objective we can expand the scope of participation of entities by including NGOs as well as Arab and Islamic governments," Abbas said. "There are broad areas to build twinning relationships and partnership among similar institutions in various sectors like educational, economic, cultural and social. There are areas to make a qualitative difference through a series of small projects involving the maximum number of Arab citizens; Muslims and Christians. He said the third topic dealt with to creating constant contact with the people of Jerusalem to break the siege imposed on them and on the Holy City, pointing out to the leading role played by brethren in the areas of 48 who continuously organize mass visits to Jerusalem, praying in its mosques, shopping in its markets and help its people feel that they are not alone. "This area underscores the need to encourage all who can, especially brethren from Arab and Islamic countries as well as our fellow Arabs and Muslims and Christians in Europe and America to go to visit Jerusalem", he said adding that this move will have political, moral, economic and humanitarian repercussions on the city of Jerusalem and its people. The Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas underlined that visit of the holy city does not mean normalization adding that the Prophet Mohammed (PBUH) praised traveling to the Al Aqsa Mosque, stressing that the visit of the prisoner is not normalization with the warden. (QNA)