Statement of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of Israel
The Communist Party of Israel (CPI) welcomes the accord signed by representatives of the Fatah and Hamas movements, concerning the establishment of an interim unity government, and preparations for elections for the Presidency, the Parliament, and the Palestinian National Council within eight months.
An accord between Fatah and Hamas regarding political cooperation is an important contribution toward the efforts by the PLO and the Palestinian Authority to achieve the support of a majority of UN General Assembly members next September in favor of the establishment of an independent Palestinian state, with East Jerusalem as its capital, alongside Israel.
The CPI stresses that the UN Assembly’s upcoming vote regarding a Palestinian state along the lines of June 4, 1967 serves the basic interests of both Israeli and Palestinian peoples in achieving a just and stable peace, based on the end of occupation, evacuation of settlements, and a solution to the refugee problem in accordance with UN resolutions.
The CPI’s Political Bureau condemns the inflammatory reaction by Prime Minister Netanyahu, according to which Fatah must make a choice between peace with Israel and peace with Hamas. It is important to note that Netanyahu and his cabinet are the ones who have argued repeatedly that signing an agreement with the Palestinians would be impossible, because Chairman Abu Mazen does not represent the government in Gaza. Now, as a Fatah-Hamas accord is in the making, it is once again revealed that the only thing that interests this dangerous obstructionist government is the continuation of occupation and settlement, while risking the possibility of new wars.
The CPI calls upon its partners in Hadash (the Democratic Front for Peace and Equality) and on all supporters of peace in Israel, Jews and Arabs alike, to intensify the struggle to end the occupation and to join forces in an effort to garner as broad public support as possible for the coming declaration of the UN Assembly in favor of establishing an independent Palestine alongside Israel. The chance to achieve a permanent peace, based on the principle of two independent states, along the lines of June 4, 1967, is more tangible today than ever before.
Let us not allow this historic opportunity to escape us! Let us save our two peoples from further war and bloodshed!
An independent Palestine is also in the interest of the masses of the Israeli people!
Tel Aviv, 28, April 2011
Click here to read the statement in Hebrew.
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