Palestinian President Calls for Salvaging Two-State Solution

Palestinian President during his speech at the UN General Assembly (AFP)
Palestinian President during his speech at the UN General Assembly (AFP)
TT

Palestinian President Calls for Salvaging Two-State Solution

Palestinian President during his speech at the UN General Assembly (AFP)
Palestinian President during his speech at the UN General Assembly (AFP)

The Palestinian President called on the United Nations General Assembly to undertake the necessary arrangements to convene a peace conference, which may be the "last opportunity to salvage the two-state solution."

Abbas asserted Thursday the need to "prevent the situation from deteriorating more seriously, threatening the security and stability of our region and the entire world."

Speaking at the 78th session of the General Assembly, Abbas stated that Israel is systematically destroying the two-state solution, calling on the UN to take deterrent measures against Israel until it fulfills its obligations.

He pointed out that Palestine would persist in pursuing accountability and justice at the relevant international bodies against Tel Aviv because of the continued Israeli occupation of the land and against everyone who had a role in the catastrophe.

- Commemorating the Nakba

Abbas also called to criminalize the denial of Palestinian Nakba and designate May 15 of each year as an international day to commemorate its anniversary and the lives of about 950,000 Palestinians who were killed in massacres committed by Zionist gangs and whose villages were demolished and who were forcibly displaced from their homes.

Abbas urged UN Member States, each in its national capacity, to take practical steps based on the relevant resolutions of international legitimacy and international law.

He also called on the states that have yet to recognize Palestine to declare their recognition and for Palestine to be admitted to full membership in the UN.

- A Yemeni warning

The Yemeni Presidential Leadership Council, Rashad al-Alimi, warned against any complacency from the international community or dealing with the Houthi militia as de facto authorities, which will lead to eradicating this behavior.

He emphasized that such an approach will perpetuate repression and the violation of public freedoms.

"We reaffirm the need to have the right guarantees for peace ... pursuant to the Saudi initiative," based on justice and fairness, he continued.

Any peace agreement or trust-building measures should be targeted towards alleviating the suffering of the Yemeni people.

- Lebanese Challenges

The proceedings of the General Assembly continued until late Wednesday night, during which Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati delivered his speech.

Mikati looked forward to the Lebanese Parliament exercising its sovereign rule by electing a president in the coming period, a head of state around whom the Lebanese would unite and who would enshrine the return of the republic.

He emphasized Lebanon's unique cross-border challenges with neighboring Syria, criticizing the international community's inability to find sustainable solutions to the displacement of Syrian refugees.

The Prime Minister argued that one of Lebanon's primary challenges was filling the presidential void, along with instituting reforms needed to achieve economic recovery, ease the financial crisis, and promote institutional and political stability in the country.

"Twelve years into the Syrian crisis, Lebanon is still bearing the burden of successive waves of displacement, with far-reaching economic and social repercussions on all aspects of life, thus threatening Lebanon's very existence," he said.

Mikati also issued renewed criticism of Israel's continued occupation of southern Lebanon, daily violations of Lebanese sovereignty, and its violation of Security Council resolution 1701.

- Iran's Nuclear Program

Meanwhile, Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi informed reporters in New York that relations with the US could progress if President Joe Biden's administration showed a willingness to return to the nuclear deal, officially known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) of 2015.

Raisi considered that the first step would be easing sanctions.

The President stated that US officials have reached out through several channels expressing their desire for dialogue, but Iran believes tangible actions should back this.

Iran's nuclear program is purely for peaceful purposes and is used in agriculture and the oil and gas infrastructure, he asserted, denying reports suggesting that Iran has increased enrichment levels.

When asked about IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi, Raisi confirmed they had spoken in Tehran earlier in March, stressing that his country cooperates with the agency.

He condemned the European countries' (E3) announcement to maintain sanctions on Iran, originally scheduled to end in October, under the 2015 nuclear deal.

- Illegal Migration

Italy's far-right prime minister, Giorgia Meloni, said she will not allow the country to become "Europe's refugee camp" after thousands of people seeking refuge landed on its shores.

- Libya's ordeal

The Libyan Minister of Youth of the Government of National Unity (GNU), Fathallah al-Zeni, also delivered a speech on behalf of the Head of the Presidential Council, Mohammed Menfi, who apologized for not participating due to the floods that struck the eastern regions of Libya.

Zeni indicated that Libyans and the world woke up on Sunday, September 10, to a terrible scene and a major disaster in Derna, as thousands died or went missing.

He emphasized that the size of the disaster exceeded all local capabilities.



French FM Says Iraq Should Not Be Dragged into Regional Conflicts

 Iraqi Foreign Minister Fouad Hussein, right, shakes hands with French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot in Baghdad, Iraq, Wednesday, April 23, 2025. (AP)
Iraqi Foreign Minister Fouad Hussein, right, shakes hands with French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot in Baghdad, Iraq, Wednesday, April 23, 2025. (AP)
TT

French FM Says Iraq Should Not Be Dragged into Regional Conflicts

 Iraqi Foreign Minister Fouad Hussein, right, shakes hands with French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot in Baghdad, Iraq, Wednesday, April 23, 2025. (AP)
Iraqi Foreign Minister Fouad Hussein, right, shakes hands with French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot in Baghdad, Iraq, Wednesday, April 23, 2025. (AP)

France's foreign minister said on Wednesday that Iraq should not be pulled into conflicts in a turbulent Middle East during his first visit to the country, which has suffered from decades of instability.

Jean-Noel Barrot will also visit Kuwait as part of a regional tour to push for a two-state solution to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict.

Amid the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza, Iraq, an ally to both Tehran and Washington, has been navigating a delicate balancing act not to be drawn into the fighting, after pro-Iran factions launched numerous attacks on US troops based in Iraq, as well as mostly failed attacks on Israel.

"It is essential for Iraq not to be drawn into conflicts it did not choose," Barrot said in a joint conference with his counterpart Fuad Hussein.

He praised the Iraqi government's efforts to "preserve the stability of the country."

"We are convinced that a strong and independent Iraq is a source of stability for the entire region, which is threatened today by the conflict that started on October 7, and Iran's destabilizing activities," Barrot said.

There have been no attacks by pro-Iran Iraqi factions for several months, while Iraq is now preparing to host an Arab League summit and the third edition of the Baghdad Conference on regional stability, which Paris has been co-organizing with Baghdad since 2021.

Since returning to the White House in January, US President Donald Trump has reinstated his "maximum pressure" policy with Iran while engaging in talks over its nuclear program.

Fouad Hussein urged for successful talks "to spare the region from the danger of war," adding that "there are no alternatives to negotiations."

Barrot met Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani in Baghdad, and he is expected later in the autonomous Kurdistan region in northern Iraq to meet with Kurdish leaders.

Sudani said he welcomed "an upcoming visit" of French President Emmanuel Macron to Iraq, which would be his third trip to the country.

Iraq and France have been strengthening their bilateral relations in several sectors, including energy and security.

France has deployed troops in Iraq as part of the US-led international coalition to fight the ISIS group, which was defeated in Iraq in 2017, although some of its cells remain active.

Baghdad is now seeking to end the coalition's mission and replace it with bilateral military partnerships with the coalition's members, saying its own forces can lead the fight against the weakened militants.

"We cannot allow ten years of success against terrorism to be undermined," Barrot said, adding that France remains ready to contribute to the fighting.

Barrot's regional tour will also help "prepare for the international conference for the implementation of the two-state solution" that Paris will co-organize in June with Riyadh, the French foreign ministry said.

Macron said earlier this month that France planned to recognize a Palestinian state, possibly as early as June.

He said he hoped it would "trigger a series of other recognitions", including of Israel.

For decades, the formal recognition of a Palestinian state has been seen as the endgame of a peace process between Palestinians and Israel.