YouSaid · the spoken record

Mahmoud ABBAS

lines on the record: 429
first: 2006-09-24
most recent: 2023-09-24
sittings or episodes: 18
sources: un-general-debate

Every line below is reproduced as it was said and linked to the record it came from. Nothing here is summarised or generated. Directory · Search · Corrections

“We will not allow those who tried to undermine our national destiny to achieve their aims. I came to this rostrum to convey a message from an exhausted people which has long suffered from occupation, displacement, prison and martyrdom. At the same time, however, they are a people who, imbued with dignity and faith, will build their own future, even though their past has been the work of those who have plotted against them and against their rights. I have come to reiterate the words of our immortal leader Yasser Arafat, who was certain that the green branch of peace, which never withers or dies would never fall from his hand.”
2007-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 62 (2007)
“It would be wrong for anyone to think that our people, which has for decades sacrificed martyrs, prisoners and the wounded in order to obtain freedom, independence and democracy and to build a free and prosperous country, will follow such an armed group, a closed regime and a closed, backward society. Some have attempted in the past to play the Palestinian issue as a political card in the service of regional interests in order to achieve expansionist goals or to promote specific ideas or ideologies that would ignore the true interests of the Palestinian people. But we who have struggled all our lives for our national cause, for the protection of the rights and interests of our people and for rejection of hegemony and occupation will not allow such a tragedy to reoccur.”
2007-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 62 (2007)
“I reaffirm here the full readiness of our people to join a genuine peace process that will lead to a comprehensive, full agreement on all final status issues. As we promised, we will put such an agreement to a popular referendum that will include all Palestinian factions and groups so that they can give their views and opinions on any decision that would lead to defending and safeguarding peace comprehensively and strategically. I also reaffirm that we will continue to deal with the rebellion that took place in the Gaza Strip. We shall do so in conformity with our basic laws and so that we can preserve democracy in our country. Attempts from whatever group or faction to impose their will and dark ideas by force and armed revolt will not derail our democracy.”
2007-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 62 (2007)
“It must also be based on the Road Map, endorsed in Security Council resolution 1515 (2003), the Arab Peace Initiative and the various negotiations, projects and plans that have been proposed by many parties since 2000. I therefore address myself to the Israeli Government, with whose head I have recently met. We discussed the important issues in depth, attempting to end the cycle of lost opportunities so that the international conference will become a substantial reality. We can move towards that conference together, with clear, realistic, detailed plans with a view to settling all of the final status issues, including Jerusalem, borders, refugees, water security and other key issues.”
2007-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 62 (2007)
“Those States would have normal relations with Israel, once the Israeli occupation of Palestinian and other Arab territories had ended and an independent, sovereign Palestinian State had been created within the 1967 borders. That is why we are committed to the substance of that proposed meeting, which should be held soon with the participation of all parties concerned. Let me say quite frankly that not a single responsible political figure or leader who does not know that the solution to the problem lies solely between us and our Israeli neighbours. Reaching such a lasting solution can only be a result of the many resolutions of the General Assembly, as well as of the initiative of President Bush, who has urged a two-State solution: a Palestinian State living side-by-side with the State of Israel.”
2007-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 62 (2007)
“Is it not time for our people to be able to enjoy freedom and independence on equal footing with all other peoples of the world so that they can build a peaceful future together with all of their neighbours, including the State of Israel? I hope that I will not have to come back to this rostrum next year to ask the same questions. There is not the slightest obstacle to the successful holding of the upcoming peace conference, because our brotherly, Arab countries have demonstrated through the Arab Peace Initiative their true readiness to bring about a just, lasting and comprehensive peace, from which all States of the region would benefit.”
2007-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 62 (2007)
“Is it not time to end the policies of settlement expansionism, of taking land from Palestinians under various pretexts, of building the apartheid separation wall, laying siege and creating checkpoints around cities and towns and refugee camps? Is it not time to end the policy of collective punishment and of denying freedom to the more than 11,300 Palestinians who are rotting in Israeli prisons, some for more than 25 years? Is it not time to make Jerusalem a city of peace for all faiths and religions? Is it not time for Israel, the occupying Power, to end any work that would change the sacred nature of that city and all attempts to displace its inhabitants and to violate sites sacred to Islam and Christianity? Is it not time for Israel to end the daily assassinations, displacements, destruction of houses and seizure of land?”
2007-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 62 (2007)
“Is it not high time to take this opportunity, the beginnings of which we see today, as the international community is moving towards relaunching the peace process, which enjoys the support not only of Israelis and Palestinians, but also of the international community and the world at large? Is it not time to move seriously towards negotiating a complete end to the 1967 Israeli occupation of Arab and Palestinian territories, thereby achieving the vision of two States? Is it not time to create a Palestinian State, with East Jerusalem as its capital, to settle the refugee issue and to put an end to six decades of suffering? Is it not time to reach a fair, agreed settlement under General Assembly resolution 194 (III) of 1948?”
2007-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 62 (2007)
“We need to work to strengthen human understanding among religions and cultures because the attempt to foment conflict among religions, cultures and civilizations is one of the most dangerous methods used by international terrorism today. That is why a dialogue among cultures, religions and civilizations is necessary today, particularly because we know that world wars have not been wars of religion or culture, but rather wars of interest. That reality is only one fragment of the overall picture. In fact, missing recurrent opportunities to address the issues of our region seriously so as to reach bold, comprehensive solutions, in particular to the Palestinian question, moves our people to the precipice of despair and depression and makes them easy prey to the forces of ignorance and fanaticism.”
2007-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 62 (2007)
“There can be no doubt that defending Islam a religion of moderation, of love and brotherhood; a human religion is the responsibility of those active forces in our region who seek to counter any attempt to undermine that true religion or to portray it in an unfair manner that is entirely out of keeping with its precepts. Islam is a religion of tolerance that opposes killing, terrorism and assassination. It is a religion of enlightenment, not ignorance or backwardness; a religion of openness to the world. It is against extremism and close-mindedness. We need to work hand in hand to preserve our shared human values. Those values are today being violated, undermined and weakened.”
2007-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 62 (2007)
“Indeed, thanks to the determination of the vast majority of our people, and thanks to the support of the international community, our people are capable of overcoming the tragic situation that we are being pushed into by the forces of occupation, extremism and aggression and, by those who seek to provoke war and terrorism in our region. There are on the other hand responsible, active forces in the Middle East, representing the consciousness of the people and possessing a true desire for freedom, progress and democracy for the people. Although these forces are working in extreme difficulty, they are firmly committed to overcoming the current situation in order to create a new future for the Middle East in which our peoples would enjoy freedom and equality.”
2007-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 62 (2007)
“Our experience over the years and decades shows that the policy of delaying a settlement of the principal conflicts in the region, the policy of providing partial solutions and the policy aimed at containing the conflict by limiting the damage only further complicate things, to the point where, today, there is a clear threat of civil war or regional war. Moreover this climate has been conducive to terrorism, which unfortunately has spread to become a global phenomenon. However, this grim picture should not mask the fact that hope is still alive.”
2007-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 62 (2007)
“I would like also to thank Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, who has given top priority to the Palestinian question, who has worked to reach a solution to the Israel-Palestinian conflict and who has placed this matter at the centre of his concerns. He has, in addition, creatively contributed to seeking the means to relaunch the Middle East peace process. The confrontations, wars and conflicts in our region and their tragic repercussions for the peoples of the region constitute the primary threat to global peace. They call all of mankind to awareness. They demand rapid intervention from the international community with the aim of settling this situation boldly and without delay.”
2007-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 62 (2007)
“For many decades, those institutions have continued to reaffirm the established national rights of the Palestinian people and to provide varied support for our people, in the political, economic and humanitarian realms. Here, we must commend the exceptional ongoing work of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) and other institutions in safeguarding the future for generations of Palestinian refugees and providing them with the basic services they need. Our appreciation goes also to those who have upheld the basic human rights of the Palestinian people and who have provided support in the areas of education and culture and in strengthening the role of the Palestinian Authority since its inception, as well as in building and strengthening our national institutions.”
2007-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 62 (2007)
“It is a pleasure, Sir, to congratulate you on your election to the presidency of the Assembly at this session. We have every hope that your efforts will be successful. It is also a pleasure for me to convey our appreciation and pride to Her Excellency Sheikha Haya Rashed Al-Khalifa for the tremendous effort she undertook as President of the General Assembly at the sixty-first session. I would like to take this opportunity to express our full confidence in the role of the United Nations and all of its specialized agencies with respect to their historic responsibilities regarding the Palestinian question, responsibilities they will continue to bear until this question is comprehensively settled.”
2007-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 62 (2007)
“I want my homeland, Palestine, to be a homeland, rather than a prison — independent and sovereign, like homelands of all other peoples of this world. I want Jerusalem to be the point of convergence for the dialogue of all prophets and the capital of two States living side by side in peace and equality. Thirty-two years ago, from this rostrum, the late President Yasser Arafat issued his famous and resounding call: “Do not let the olive branch fall from my hand” (A/PV.2282, para. 82). I now reiterate that call. Do not let the olive branch fall from my hand. I repeat: do not let the olive branch fall from my hand.”
2006-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 61 (2006)
“That siege has inflicted extensive damage on our 53 06-53005 society, our livelihood and the means to our growth and progress. Madam President, I come to you bearing the wounds of a people who are bleeding on a daily basis. We are a people who seeks normal life, where our children can go safely to school, where children are born to live, not die; where youth can find honourable and decent work that provides them with a dignified path to a secure future so that they can be partners in formulating their history, rather than be victims to the cruelty of history; where women give birth in hospitals, not at the checkpoints of the occupation; where families gather in the evening to dream of a new day, a day without killing, imprisonment or arrest. I simply want tomorrow to be better than today.”
2006-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 61 (2006)
“When such a national consensus is reached and a new national unity Government has been established according to it, it must be viewed as a qualitative achievement — not a step backwards or a limited regression from the path to which we have always been determinedly committed — even in the face of the bleakest of conditions. I would like to reiterate that negotiations with Israel have been and will remain under the jurisdiction and responsibility of the Palestine Liberation Organization, which I chair. The outcome of these negotiations will be presented to the Palestinian National Council, the highest Palestinian national body, or to a national public referendum. What we have achieved in this regard should suffice to lift the unjust siege imposed on our people.”
2006-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 61 (2006)
“Any future Government will commit to imposing security and order, to ending the phenomenon of multiple militias, lack of discipline or chaos, and will commit to the rule of law, since this is primarily a national Palestinian need. The efforts that we have exerted are for the sole purpose of establishing national unity that has real substance in order to achieve national Palestinian consensus around our national objectives, which comply with international legitimacy and the Arab Peace Initiative and call for peaceful means for the realization of these objectives.”
2006-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 61 (2006)
“Based on our commitment to these criteria, I would like to reaffirm that any future Palestinian Government will commit to and abide by all the agreements that the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) and the Palestinian National Authority have committed to in the past, particularly the letters of mutual recognition dated 9 September 1993 exchanged between the two late, great leaders, Yasser Arafat and Itzhak Rabin. These two letters contain the mutual recognition by Israel and the PLO, the renunciation of violence and the adoption of negotiations as the path towards reaching a permanent solution leading to the establishment of the independent State of Palestine alongside the State of Israel.”
2006-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 61 (2006)
“This is encouraging, provided that the alternative is not stagnation or the imposition of faits accomplis on the ground, but rather a return to the negotiating table and to reaching a comprehensive solution to all of the permanent status issues in order to ensure a secure future for our children and theirs. Recently, in tandem with all the strands and persuasions of the Palestinian political spectrum, I have sought to establish a Government of national unity that is consistent with international and Arab legitimacy and that corresponds to the principles established by the Quartet.”
2006-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 61 (2006)
“Such a solution must be based on international legitimacy, as stressed in the Arab Peace Initiative, through the establishment of the independent State of Palestine on the 4 June 1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital, and in reaching a just and agreed solution for the problem of the refugees — who constitute more than half of our Palestinian people — in accordance with United Nations General Assembly resolution 194 (III) of 11 December 1948. Lately, we have heard from the Government of Israel that it will abandon its policy of unilateralism and one-sided actions.”
2006-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 61 (2006)
“The whole international community, particularly influential Powers, is called upon to provide tangible evidence that it will support an unconditional resumption of negotiations and provide those negotiations with true international support to ensure their success through the cessation of settlement activity, collective punishment and separation walls. This would provide a positive atmosphere for relaunching the negotiations and reaching the objectives of a just peace based on a two-State solution, as called for by President George Bush of the United States of America.”
2006-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 61 (2006)
“Under such conditions, I can reasonably ask: how can the international community expect extremism to retreat or the waves of violence to ebb? How can we and all the forces of moderation and peace in our region forcefully intervene and convince our public opinion that there is hope on the horizon? Or that the option of dialogue, negotiation and international legitimacy — which is our strategic choice and the path which we relentlessly advocate and which we will never abandon — will be fruitful and has a real chance of success? Living in the midst of this tragedy, I am not the only one who must answer this fundamental question.”
2006-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 61 (2006)
“Despair and frustration thrive in the midst of the roar of the bulldozers that are preparing for the construction of illegal settlements, changes in the demographic nature of Jerusalem and erection of an apartheid separation wall inside our occupied land and between its various parts. They thrive on the continuation of the frightful siege, through military checkpoints that have turned our cities and provinces into reservations, on the continuous saga of killings and assassinations that have claimed hundreds of civilian lives, on the demolitions of homes and on the ongoing arrests of more than 06-53005 52 8,000 Palestinians, including parliamentarians and cabinet ministers. Some of the detained have been languishing for three decades, and their release and freedom are still eagerly awaited by their families and their people.”
2006-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 61 (2006)
“Indeed, I need not reconfirm the fact that, after the experiences of war and suffering that we have been through, unless the question of Palestine and that of the continuing occupation of Palestinian and Arab lands since 1967 is resolved, the elements of tension and conflagration will keep the conflict alive and leave the door wide open to all forms of violence, terrorism, regional confrontations and global crises. It is unfortunate today to see that international plans and initiatives, foremost among them the road map, which was endorsed by the United Nations Security Council, have reached a state of stagnation, even regression. Calls for the resumption of negotiations are faced with preconditions.”
2006-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 61 (2006)
“We also commend him in particular for his efforts in respect of the Arab-Israeli conflict, the core of which is the question of Palestine. Only a few weeks ago, the fires of war stopped raging in Lebanon. Despite the gravity of the losses, the destruction and the tragedy, the international community expeditiously, effectively and successfully intervened to put an end to the war and to provide support to the people and the legitimate Government of Lebanon in order to safeguard its security and independence and to put an end to the era of wars on its land. I commend the role played by the international community, and I hope that that positive and effective intervention will be extended, politically and practically, so as to resolve the root causes of all the conflicts and wars that have plagued our region for many decades.”
2006-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 61 (2006)
“Indeed, as President Woodrow Wilson said in his first inaugural address: “Nowhere else in the world have noble men and women exhibited in more striking forms the beauty and the energy of sympathy and helpfulness and counsel in their efforts to rectify wrong, alleviate suffering, and set the weak in the way of strength and hope.” I hope, therefore, that this session will promote cooperation between nations and peoples in pursuit of their common interests, namely the principles enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations, which form the basis for membership in this Organization. We must commend highly the Secretary-General, Mr. Kofi Annan, for the effective role he has played and the considerable efforts he has deployed, as well as for his wise leadership in enhancing the United Nations and reinvigorating its role.”
2006-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 61 (2006)
“I would like to start by congratulating Ms. Haya Rashed Al- Khalifa on her election to preside over this session and to wish her success in achieving the objectives of the United Nations, which are accepted by all nations of the world, which believe that the Organization was created to safeguard international peace, human rights, and the right of peoples to self-determination.”
2006-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 61 (2006)