PFLP: Abbas’ statements on the right of return and resistance are unacceptable

''Palestinian people will continue to insist on their right of return and self-determination and a democratic Palestine on all of the land of Palestine''. PFLP

PFLP: Abbas’ statements on the right of return and resistance are unacceptable
Posted: 03 Nov 2012 05:04 AM PDT

The Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine stated its complete rejection of the statements of PA President Mahmoud Abbas in an interview with Israeli television and demanded that the Executive Committee and Central Council of the PLO act immediately to address these statements.

Comrade Dr. Rabah Muhanna, member of the political bureau of the PFLP, said that these statements contradict the PLO’s own positions and the fundamental principles of the Palestinian people, including the right of return, self-determination, the independent state, the right of our people to exercise all forms of resistance against the occupation to achieve our national goals. He noted that Abu Mazen is not entitled to liquidate these constants, nor is anyone else, noting that these remarks apparently seek to propitiate and beg before the US and Israel seeking to be given something. Dr. Muhanna said that the Palestinian people will continue to insist on their right of return and self-determination and a democratic Palestine on all of the land of Palestine.

Comrade Khalida Jarrar, also a member of the Political Bureau, joined in the strong condemnation, saying that these statements seek to undermine a sacred and inalienable right and cross a red line, and that the right to return cannot be undermined by any person. It is not a personal opinion of this or that person. Jarrar also denounced his claims that he would not allow the outbreak of a third intifada, noting that no one can restrain the anger of the resistance of the Palestinian people or the inevitability of a new uprising so long as the occupation and its aggressive policies continue to exist.

Jarrar said that the resistance in all of its forms has been and continues to be the path of the Palestinian people in the struggle against the occupation in order to gain their rights, and said that no matter how long it takes our people will achieve freedom, return and self-determination and will return to their hometowns from which they were forced in 1948.

Syrian tanks in Golan Heights buffer zone, says Israel

Latest update: 03/11/2012 
Syrian tanks in Golan Heights buffer zone, says Israel

Israel’s military lodged a complaint with the United Nations on Saturday after three Syrian tanks allegedly entered the demilitarised zone in the Golan Heights which separates the two countries, just a few kilometres from an Israeli military post.

By News Wires (text)

Three Syrian tanks entered the demilitarized zone in the Golan Heights on Saturday, prompting Israel to complain to U.N. peacekeepers, a military spokesman said. The foray would be the first such violation in 40 years and hikes concerns that violence from Syria’s civil war could heat up a long-quiet frontier.

Israel’s relatively low-key response of turning to the U.N. suggested it did not see the Syrian armor as an immediate threat.

But the entry marks the most serious spillover of Syria’s turmoil at the frontier to date. Misfired Syrian shells have exploded inside Israel on several occasions and a tourist site was temporary shut after armed Syrians were spotted nearby recently.

The three tanks entered the DMZ on Saturday and Israel lodged a complaint with the peacekeepers, an Israeli military spokeswoman said, speaking on condition of anonymity in line with military protocol. She did not elaborate on what the tanks were doing.

The Israeli news site Ynet said the tanks and two armored personnel carriers drove a few kilometers (miles) away from Israeli military positions.

Israel captured the Golan Heights from Syria in the 1967 Mideast war. It later annexed the strategic territory overlooking northern Israel in a move that is not recognized internationally. Before 1967, Syria used the highlands to shell Israeli villages and farms.

The DMZ, which is about 7 kilometers (3.5 miles) at its widest and 200 meters (yards) at its narrowest, was created after the 1973 war in which Syria tried to retake the plateau.

Marco Carminjani, an official with the U.N. body supervising the zone, said he could not immediately confirm the entry of the tanks. But if the report is true, he said, it would be a violation of the 1974 disengagement agreement between Syria and Israel. He said it would be the first such move in the zone since the accord.

There was no immediate comment from Syria.

Israel and Syria have been bitter enemies for decades and have fought several wars but the border has been mostly quiet for years.

There is concern in Israel that if the regime of Syrian President Bashar Assad is toppled, the country could fall into the hands of Islamic extremists or descend into sectarian warfare, destabilizing the region.

Israeli officials have also expressed concern that the frontier region could turn into a lawless area like Egypt’s Sinai desert, where Islamic militants have gained strength since the ouster last year of Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak.