NEW YORK: President Mahmoud Abbas Wednesday stressed the need for international efforts to compel Israel to comply with United Nations resolutions.

During a meeting with his French counterpart, Emmanuel Macron, on the sidelines of the 79th session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in New York, President Abbas discussed with Macron the means to develop bilateral Palestinian-French friendship relations and cooperation, while commending France for its substantial support to the Palestinian people at the political and financial levels as well as for its key role in building Palestinian institutions.

President Abbas stressed the need for intensified and concerted efforts by the international community to compel Israel, the occupying power, to respect the United Nations resolutions and rulings of international courts, particularly the recent UNGA resolution demanding Israel to end its unlawful occupation of the Palestinian territories within 12 months, as he expressed appreciation for France’s vote in
favor of the resolution.

He reiterated Palestine’s position calling for an immediate end to the ongoing Israeli genocidal aggression on the Gaza Strip, the entry of humanitarian aid into all parts of the war-torn Strip, the complete withdrawal of the occupation forces from the Strip and the cessation of the aggression on the West Bank and East Jerusalem.

He highlighted the importance of the successive recognitions by EU member states of the State of Palestine, a step which he believes would give the Palestinian people hope for the possibility of achieving their aspirations for freedom and independence.

He called on Macron to translate the strong Palestinian-French friendship into concrete action by recognizing the State of Palestine and supporting Palestine’s bid for full membership of the United Nations, so as to initiate a political path based on United Nations resolutions that would end the Israeli occupation and realize the establishment of the Palestinian state, with East Jerusalem as its capital.

He
also called on France to put pressure on Israel to release the Palestinian tax revenues it continues to withhold and halt any deductions from the tax revenues.

Source: Palestine news & Information Agency – WAFA