Arab League Calls for Immediate, Permanent End to Israeli War on Gaza 

Israeli army tanks drive in an area of Israel's southern border with the Gaza Strip on June 4, 2024, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas. (AFP)
Israeli army tanks drive in an area of Israel's southern border with the Gaza Strip on June 4, 2024, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas. (AFP)
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Arab League Calls for Immediate, Permanent End to Israeli War on Gaza 

Israeli army tanks drive in an area of Israel's southern border with the Gaza Strip on June 4, 2024, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas. (AFP)
Israeli army tanks drive in an area of Israel's southern border with the Gaza Strip on June 4, 2024, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas. (AFP)

The Arab League called on Wednesday for the immediate and permanent cessation of Israeli war on Gaza, ensuring the entry of humanitarian aid, immediately starting efforts to rebuild the coastal enclave, and creating an independent Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital.

On the 57th anniversary of the Naksa, the General Secretariat of the Arab League (Palestine and Occupied Arab Territories Sector) said this year's commemoration comes amid a destructive war by Israel on the Palestinian people, especially in Gaza, where more than 2.3 million people are “subjected to war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide, in full view of the world.”

It noted the “unceasing settlement policies, killings, arrests, house demolitions, and desecration of religious sanctities in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem,” It condemned “Israel's refusal to comply with international law and resolutions that ask it to end the occupation and withdraw from all occupied Palestinian and other Arab territories, and allow the creation of an independent Palestinian state” in accordance with international resolutions and the 2002 Arab peace initiative.

The Arab League called on the international community, particularly the UN Security Council, to assume its responsibility and enforce its relevant resolutions.

It welcomed “the positive and constructive stances of all peace-loving countries and peoples, especially those that have recognized the State of Palestine” as a prerequisite to implementing the two-state solution. It urged countries that have not yet taken this decision to follow suit, “as it is a step toward security, peace, and stability in the region.”

The Arab League stressed “its solidarity with and support for the Palestinian people’s struggle to defend their land, homeland, and sanctities,” reiterating the “continued commitment of Arab nations and peoples to the Palestinian cause.”



Abbas Denounces Israeli Gaza Offensive at UN, Insists: 'We Will Not Leave'

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas addresses the 79th United Nations General Assembly at United Nations headquarters in New York, US, September 26, 2024.   REUTERS/Brendan McDermid
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas addresses the 79th United Nations General Assembly at United Nations headquarters in New York, US, September 26, 2024. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid
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Abbas Denounces Israeli Gaza Offensive at UN, Insists: 'We Will Not Leave'

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas addresses the 79th United Nations General Assembly at United Nations headquarters in New York, US, September 26, 2024.   REUTERS/Brendan McDermid
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas addresses the 79th United Nations General Assembly at United Nations headquarters in New York, US, September 26, 2024. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid

The head of the Palestinian Authority denounced Israel and its offensive in the Gaza Strip in front of world leaders Thursday, appealing to other nations to stop what he called a “genocidal war” against a place and people he said had been totally destroyed.
Mahmoud Abbas used the rostrum of the UN General Assembly as he typically does — to criticize Israel. But this was the first time he did so since the Oct. 7, 2023, attacks by Hamas on Israel that triggered an Israeli military operation that has devastated the Gaza Strip.
Abbas strode to the podium to loud applause and a few unintelligible shouts. His first words were a sentence repeated three times: “We will not leave. We will not leave. We will not leave.”
He accused Israel of destroying Gaza and making it unlivable. And he said that his government should govern post-war Gaza as part of an independent Palestinian state, a vision that Israel’s hardline government rejects.
“Palestine is our homeland. It is the land of our fathers and our grandfathers. It will remain ours. And if anyone were to leave, it would be the occupying usurpers," The Associated Press quoted him as saying.
A nationwide series of campus protests against Israel's operations in Gaza swept the United States in the spring and largely originated at Columbia University, about 70 blocks north of the United Nations.
“The American people are marching in the streets in these demonstrations. We are appreciative of them," Abbas said.
Israel’s campaign in Gaza has killed more than 41,500 Palestinians and wounded more than 96,000 others, according to the latest figures released Thursday by the Health Ministry.

Abbas spent big chunks of his speech at the United Nations talking about the state of life in Gaza, and he painted a bleak picture.
"Entire family names have been written out of the civil record," he said. "Gaza is no longer fit for life. Most homes have been destroyed. The same applies for most buildings. ... Roads. Churches. Mosques. Water plants. Electric plants. Sanitation plants. Anyone who has gone to Gaza and known it before would not recognize it anymore.”
Among his demands, none of which are new: A full Israeli withdrawal from the Gaza Strip — not “buffer zones.” Allowing Gaza's displaced Palestinians — an estimated 90% of the population — to return to their homes. And a central role for Abbas' government in any future Gaza.
“Stop this crime. Stop it now. Stop killing children and women. Stop the genocide. Stop sending weapons to Israel. This madness cannot continue. The entire world is responsible for what is happening to our people in Gaza and the West Bank.”