Abbas to discuss new moves after resolution failure

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas will hold an urgent meeting on Wednesday to discuss new moves after the UN Security Council failed to pass a draft resolution to end the Israeli occupation, officials said on Wednesday.

A senior Palestinian official told Xinhua that Abbas is to chair this emergency meeting on Wednesday evening with the Palestinian leadership to study alternatives after the UN decision.

"It's possible that President Abbas instructs for joining 20 international treaties and agencies, but it is still early to join the International Criminal Court at The Hague," said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

Earlier in the day, Abbas said that the failure to pass the draft resolution "is not the end."

"The disapproval of our resolution to end the Israeli occupation is not the end. Starting from tonight, we've what we say and what we do," Abbas said as he lit a torch to mark 50 years for establishing his Fatah movement.

"Our struggle won't end until we get to Jerusalem, the eternal capital of our Palestinian state which will remain so. Without Jerusalem, the West Bank or Gaza, there will be no Palestinian state at all," said Abbas.

Meanwhile, Saeb Erekat, chief Palestinian negotiator, said in an emailed press statement that the meeting for the Palestinian leadership was called right after the failure at the UN Security Council to grant a resolution to end the Israeli occupation and establish a Palestinian state.

"We strongly believe that the diplomacy which guarantees joining the international treaties and agencies is a right for the Palestinian people," Erekat said, adding "after the meeting tonight, we will decide what will be our upcoming steps in the future."

According to the state-run news agency Wafa, the draft resolution gained support of eight member states of the Security Council, namely, China, Jordan, France, Russia, Argentina, Chad, Chili and Luxemburg.

Five states, which are the UK, Lithuania, Nigeria, Korea and Rawanda, abstained, while the United States and Australia voted against the draft resolution.

Erekat said that the Palestinians decided to present the draft resolution to the Security Council "in order to gain the help of the international community to keep peace and security in the region."

He stressed that what is needed now "is to end Israel's culture of immunity and impunity in order to achieve a just and comprehensive peace."

The Palestinians warned that if they failed to gain the consensus of the Security Council on ending the Israeli occupation, they would go to join the international treaties and agencies, and carry out other measures such as stopping security cooperation with Israel.

The Islamist Hamas movement said in an emailed press statement that the failure of the draft resolution "is an additional failure to the so-called peace process." It called on Abbas "to end security cooperation with the Israeli occupation."

Musheer al-Masri, a senior Hamas leader in Gaza, said "the failure of the draft resolution is a powerful strike and a big shock to the Palestinians."

"It clearly expressed the failure in the so-called peace process. What is needed now from Abbas is to be committed to implementing the reconciliation agreements and to get back to the people," al-Masri said, calling for rebuilding the Palestine Liberation Organization.

George Jackman from a West Bank think-tanker told Xinhua that the credibility of the Palestinian leadership "is put now in a sensitive position after the failure in the Security Council," adding that "this would influence the presence of the Palestinian Authority if nothing come up or any changes happen."

《Abbas to discuss new moves after resolution failure》永久阅读地址: http://91kudian.com/yingyu/18236/