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Palestine Authority President Mahmoud Abbas Arrives In Chile |
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Written by Gida Homad-Hamam
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Thursday, 26 November 2009 22:36 |
Abbas is seeking Chile’s support for recognition of an independent Palestinian state
Palestinian Authority (PA) president Mahmoud Abbas arrived in Santiago on Tuesday seeking support for United Nation (UN) recognition of an independent Palestinian state.
Recognition would include Palestinian boundaries prior to the Six Day War in 1967 and would include Jerusalem as its capital.
The 1967 war - known to Palestinians as Al-Naksa “The Setback” - was between Israel and surrounding Arab states and ended with Israel controlling the West Bank, East Jerusalem, the Gaza Strip, the Golan Heights and the Sinai Peninsula.
President Abbas was welcomed by Chile’s Palestinian community- the largest of any outside the Arab world- at the Estadio Palestino, where a dinner was held in his honor.
On Wednesday Abbas paid tribute to the Bernardo O’Higgins monument and then met with President Michelle Bachelet.
Earlier this week Abbas met with Argentine President Cristina Fernandez and on last Thursday he met with with Brazil’s Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.
In an interview with the Argentine daily Clarín, Abbas said he was disappointed with U.S. President Barack Obama’s slowness to revive the peace process and the Road Map - a peace plan proposed by Russia, the United States, the European Union (EU) and the UN.
Abbas also expressed hope that Lula will play a more active role as a mediator in the Israeli/Palestinian conflict since he has good relations with both sides, as well as with the U.S.
Referring to Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s visit to Brazil this week, Abass urged Lula to persuade the Iranian president to halt support of Abbas’s Fatah party rival Hamas. The Palestinian delegation is scheduled to meet with Paraguayan president Fernando Lugo later this week.
Palestinian-Israeli peace talks have been on hold since the three-week conflict between Hamas and Israel in December 2008, which left over 1,300 Palestinian and 13 Israeli dead, including women and children. The Palestinians have so far rejected the renewal of talks until Israel stops its expansion of settlements on Palestinian lands. With negotiations deadlocked, Abbas hopes the international community will support the establishment of a Palestinian state.
The Palestinian delegation’s South American visit comes a week after the visit of Israeli president Shimon Peres to Brazil and Argentina.
SOURCES: EL MERCURIO, www.maannews.net, www.haaretz.com, www.clarin.com
By Gida Homad-Hamam (
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About the writer Gida Homad-Hamam
Gida, a Jordanian of Palestinian/Syrian descent started off in Chile on Aug. 3, 2007 without a word of Spanish and far far away from her home in Amman. She has a BA Specialization in Anthropology and Sociology and a Minor in Art History and Studio Arts from Concordia University, Montreal, Canada. After completing her studies, she went back to Jordan, worked for two years with CARE International and the Jordan Red Crescent amongst others, got married and embarked on the journey to Santiago.
She learnt Spanish, did an internship with Amnesty International, taught English and learned that palta is good with everything. In Santiago she has also nurtured her love for cats and garnered her interest in dogs.
She learned about the Santiago Times from a friend and thought she would try her hand at both photography and writing. Gida hopes to see a lot more of both Chile and South America. |
It is good to pick up a book once every so often
And this Manuel should educate himself before writing rubbish. AND I COULD GO ON AND ON and in the end, like or not Irael is the power house in the Middle East like it or not and once the Arabs acknowledge this fact and repect Israle as a nation - only then peace will come about not with visits, which do nothing but make a fool of the Pals.
Jerusalem belongs to Israel and that is a fact which will not change.
What kind of person are JEWS, after 47 years of killings Women and Children, occupied and destroying the Infrastructure, continue building settlements ILLEGALLY, HAVE THE PALESTINIANS IN A CAGE (3 METERS WALLS), HAVE ABSOLUTE CONTROL ON THE PALESTINIAN FREEDOM OF MOVEMENT. I CAN GO ON AND ON. THE CONFLICT HAS NOT A MILITARY SOLUTION.
YOU FORGOT THE HOLOCAUST, THIS CAN NOT BE COMPARE TO IT 47 YEARS, AND YOUR LEADERS STILL DO NOT UNDERSTAND.
I HOPE ONE DAY IT WILL BE PEOPLE WITH COMON SENCE.
BYE NOW AND MAKE PEACE NOT WAR.