Hamas, PIJ call on PLO to withdraw recognition of Israel
Hamas and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) have issued a joint statement calling on the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) to withdraw its official recognition of Israel in retaliation for the Knesset’s resolution rejecting Palestinian statehood.
The leaders of the two armed Palestinian groups met in the Qatari capital, Doha, on Thursday and agreed that they must fight Israeli attempts to “erase the Palestinian issue”.
The statement said Israel is trying to deny Palestinians their right of having an independent state with East Jerusalem as its capital and the right of return for Palestinian refugees.
The PLO recognised Israel in 1993 when its leader Yasser Arafat signed the first Oslo Accord with Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin.
HRW welcomes British funding restoration to UNRWA
Yasmine Ahmed, the head of Human Rights Watch (HRW) in the UK, has welcomed the British government’s decision to restore funding to UNRWA, saying it will save lives in Gaza.
“The Israeli government is using starvation as a weapon of war and collectively punishing the people of Gaza. As a result, Gaza is facing catastrophic food insecurity as well as massive shortages of medical supplies. UNRWA’s networks, experience and capacity is vital to alleviating this suffering,” she said.
“Withholding funding only exacerbated the horrific consequences of what has been a concerted campaign by the Israeli government to malign, discredit and undermine UNRWA’s critical and lifesaving work.”
Ahmed said this is a first step that must be followed up by blocking arms supplies to Israel.
The 🇬🇧 @DavidLammy decision 2 reinstate funding to @UNRWA will save lives & should be applauded. It hopefully heralds a more robust & mature approach to British foreign policy
🇮🇱is using starvation as a weapon of war & collectively punishing the Palestinians in Gaza 🧵
— Yasmine Ahmed (@YasmineAhmed001) July 19, 2024
