Home          Archives           Jerusalem Center Homepage       View the current issue           Jerusalem Center Videos           
Back

Notes from the Fatah Convention


[TomGrossMedia.com] Tom Gross - Among those attending the Fatah Convention in Bethlehem was Khaled Abu Asba, who took part in a notorious attack in 1978 in which an Israeli commuter bus was hijacked and 37 Israeli civilians were killed, including 12 children. At the Fatah conference, former PA Prime Minister Abu Ala welcomed Abu Asba and referred to him as one of the heroes of the Palestinian people. A huge banner in the conference hall showed a boy in a military uniform, toting a Kalashnikov assault rifle. A leaflet passed out among delegates was headlined: "Until the Zionist entity is wiped out." A resolution approved by the assembly stated that Fatah will not give up the armed struggle until all the descendants of those claiming to be of Palestinian Arab origin can live inside Israel. Another resolution decreed that placing both east and west Jerusalem under Palestinian control is a "red line" that is non-negotiable. Zakariya Zubeidi, one of the commanders of the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, was asked by a Palestinian journalist about the continuing military training the U.S. is supplying to the PA. Zubeidi smiled and said: "I am happy. In case there is a future war, we will have some people who will be well trained." Fatah spokesman Fahmi Al-Za'arir stated: "The Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades are the jewel in Fatah's crown. We must...maintain them in a state of alert." Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades activist Kifah Radaydeh said the PA would resume violence against Israel when Fatah is "capable." "It has been said that we are negotiating for peace, but our goal has never been peace. Peace is a means; the goal is Palestine."
2009-08-14 06:00:00
Full Article

Subscribe to
Daily Alert

Name:  
Email:  

Subscribe to Jerusalem Issue Briefs

Name:  
Email: