Palestinian Authority (PA) chairman Mahmoud Abbas issued an official statement on Wednesday, marking 61 years since the Palestinian Arab “revolution” - the founding of the Fatah movement.
Abbas described the launch of the “armed resistance” as “a significant historic development” that, he said, “restored the national identity of the Palestinian people after the 1948 ‘Nakba.’” The word “Nakba”, or “catastrophe” in Arabic, refers to the establishment of the State of Israel.
He further stated that no one will be able to prevent the establishment of an independent and sovereign Palestinian state with eastern Jerusalem as its capital, alongside the return of the “refugees,” in accordance with the decisions of international institutions and the Arab Peace Initiative.
In his statement, Abbas stressed that the Gaza Strip “will return to the fold of national legitimacy,” meaning it will come under the control of the Palestinian Authority, which will rebuild it and advance the vision of a Palestinian state.
He added, “There will be no Palestinian state in Gaza, and no Palestinian state without Gaza.”
The Fatah movement, led by Abbas, also issued a separate statement marking the anniversary, saying that the Palestinian Arab people “will not surrender to political plans aimed at eliminating their legitimate rights” and that they will thwart Israel’s plans to annex territories in Judea and Samaria and expel Palestinian Arabs from the Gaza Strip.