Palestinian leader, Arab foreign ministers meet to convene on West Bank issues

World Today

The Arab League foreign ministers held a meeting in Cairo attended by Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas to discus the escalation in conflict, coinciding with the U.N. International Day for solidarity with the Palestinian people.

The Arab foreign ministers discussed means to counter Israeli atrocities in Jerusalem and settlement expansion on Palestinian lands.

“We will go to the security council to request a recognition of a Palestinian state based on the June 1967 borders and place a deadline for this step,” President Abbas said. “We will sign full membership in all international organizations including the international criminal court.”

The latest Israeli measures received wide condemnation from Arab countries. The member states established plans to attract foreign support from the west.

“We call on U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon to provide international protection for Palestinians people on Palestinian land occupied in 1967,” the president said.

Abbas criticized the U.S. for being a biased mediator supporting Israel despite of what he called its illegal actions. Abbas also called for international recognition of a Palestinian state. The president thanked Sweden for recognizing Palestine as well as the parliaments in England, Ireland, and France for urging their governments to recognize a Palestinian state.

Meanwhile, the Arab League said it was pushing hard for more international action to end the Israeli occupation.

“We contacted the U.S. and permanent security council members, who all agreed that the Israeli occupation has to end,” Nabil Araby, Arab League secretary general, said. “But they said after six months, then nine months, but now it’s left open.”

Abbas had earlier met with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al Sisi, as Egypt has been mediating between Israelis and Palestinians for a two-state solution. The latest was an Egyptian initiative to secure the borders between the Israeli and Palestinian states when established.

Aside from the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Arab countries are also working on solving Palestine’s internal conflicts, especially between Hamas and Fatah, based on the Cairo agreement. The agreement called for a coalition government and uniting Palestinian factions.

CCTV America’s Yasser Hakim reported the story from Cairo.