President at New York Conference: On behalf of the State of Palestine, I express my great appreciation to the co-presidency of the conference, the United Nations, and all participating countries

SadaNews - President of the State of Palestine Mahmoud Abbas expressed, on behalf of the State of Palestine, his deep appreciation to the co-presidency, the United Nations, and all participating countries, for the historic New York Declaration issued by the July conference, which was approved by the General Assembly with an overwhelming majority, signaling the start of irreversible steps to end the humanitarian catastrophe and end the occupation, in accordance with international legitimacy and the Arab Peace Initiative, and the establishment of an independent State of Palestine with East Jerusalem as its capital, alongside the State of Israel in security, peace, and good neighborliness. In his speech before the high-level international conference on the peaceful settlement of the Palestinian issue and the implementation of the two-state solution, the president stated that the historic New York Declaration approved by the General Assembly with an overwhelming majority confirmed that the war against our people must stop immediately and sustainably, and that the crimes of siege, starvation, and destruction cannot be a means to achieve security. He praised the role of the Egyptian-Qatari-American mediation efforts aimed at stopping the war, commending the positions of both Egypt and Jordan in rejecting the displacement that the international community opposes with us. He affirmed that the State of Palestine is the only entity qualified to assume full responsibility for governance and security in Gaza through a temporary administrative committee linked to the Palestinian government in the West Bank with Arab and international support. The president also confirmed that Hamas will not have a role in governance, and that it and other factions must hand over their weapons to the Palestinian Authority, as we want a single unarmed state, one law, and one legitimate security force. He stated that the State of Palestine continues a comprehensive reform agenda that enhances governance, transparency, and the rule of law, reaffirming our commitment to conducting presidential and parliamentary elections within a year after the war ends, according to Sada News follow-up, and drafting a temporary constitution within three months to ensure the transition from authority to state, ensuring that no parties or individuals who do not adhere to the political program and international obligations of the Palestine Liberation Organization, and international legitimacy, participate, under international monitoring. President Abbas valued the positions of the countries that recognized the State of Palestine, and called on those who have not yet recognized it to do so, and demanded support for Palestine's full membership in the United Nations. In this context, the president thanked France, Britain, Canada, Australia, Belgium, Portugal, Luxembourg, Malta, San Marino, Andorra, recalling with respect and gratitude the 149 countries that recognized the State of Palestine early and participated in our long struggle, the last of which were Spain, Ireland, Norway, Slovenia, and Armenia. He praised the significant role of the conference presidency, Saudi Arabia and France, as well as Britain, in mobilizing further international recognition, and thanked all participating countries in the conference for their important role in issuing the New York Declaration and moving towards irreversible steps towards peace based on the two-state solution and international legitimacy. The following is the speech of the President of the State of Palestine Mahmoud Abbas before the high-level international conference on the peaceful settlement of the Palestinian issue and the implementation of the two-state solution: I express on behalf of the State of Palestine my deep appreciation to the co-presidency, the United Nations, and all participating countries, for the historic New York Declaration issued by the July conference, which the General Assembly approved with an overwhelming majority, signaling the beginning of irreversible steps to end the humanitarian catastrophe and end the occupation, in accordance with international legitimacy and the Arab Peace Initiative, and the embodiment of an independent State of Palestine with East Jerusalem as its capital, alongside the State of Israel in security, peace, and good neighborliness. The declaration affirmed that the war against our people must stop immediately and sustainably, and that the crimes of siege, starvation, and destruction cannot be a means to achieve security. Therefore, we demand a permanent ceasefire, guaranteed delivery of humanitarian assistance through the United Nations and UNRWA, the release of all hostages and prisoners, the withdrawal of occupation forces from Gaza, and the urgent start of reconstruction in Gaza and the West Bank through the international conference in Cairo. We commend the role of the Egyptian-Qatari-American mediation aimed at stopping the war, and we appreciate the positions of both Egypt and Jordan in rejecting displacement that the international community opposes with us. The State of Palestine is the only entity qualified to assume full responsibility for governance and security in Gaza through a temporary administrative committee linked to the Palestinian government in the West Bank with Arab and international support. Hamas will not have a role in governance, and it and other factions should hand over their weapons to the Palestinian Authority, as we want a single unarmed state, one law, and one legitimate security force. We condemn the crimes of the occupation, and we also condemn the killing and kidnapping of civilians, including what Hamas did on October 7, 2023. Conversely, we demand an end to settlement, annexation, settler terrorism, and attacks on Islamic and Christian holy sites, and we condemn the occupation policies that isolate Jerusalem, expand construction in the E1 area, and the statements about "greater Israel" which represent a disregard for international law and a direct threat to Arab national security and international peace, in addition to the gross aggression against the sovereignty of brotherly Qatar and other Arab states, which necessitates a deterrent international stance. The State of Palestine continues a comprehensive reform agenda to enhance governance, transparency, and the rule of law, including reforming the financial system and educational curricula according to UNESCO standards within two years, and establishing a unified social welfare system after canceling all previous payments to the families of detainees and martyrs, which is currently subject to international auditing by an international specialized company. We also affirm our commitment to conducting presidential and parliamentary elections within a year after the end of the war, and drafting a temporary constitution within three months to ensure the transition from authority to state, ensuring that no parties or individuals who do not comply with the political program and international obligations of the Palestine Liberation Organization and international legitimacy participate, under international monitoring. We want a modern democratic state based on the rule of law, pluralism, peaceful transfer of power, equality, justice, and the empowerment of women and youth. We appreciate the positions of the countries that recognized the State of Palestine, and we call on those who have not yet recognized it to do so, and we demand support for Palestine's full membership in the United Nations. Knowing that we recognized Israel's right to exist in 1988 and 1993 and we still recognize it. In this regard, we thank France, Britain, Canada, Australia, Belgium, Portugal, Luxembourg, Malta, San Marino, Andorra. We remember with respect and gratitude the 149 countries that recognized the State of Palestine early and participated in our long struggle, the last of which were Spain, Ireland, Norway, Slovenia, Armenia, and all the countries mentioned by President Macron. We commend the significant role of the conference presidency, Saudi Arabia and France, as well as Britain, in mobilizing further international recognition, and thanks go to all the countries participating in the conference for their important role in issuing the New York Declaration and advancing irreversible steps towards peace based on the two-state solution and international legitimacy. We also commend the role of the brotherly and friendly countries that support our cause in international forums, and we especially commend the role of Algeria, which presides over the Arab seat at the Security Council. We appreciate the positions of the peoples and organizations that support the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people to freedom, independence, and statehood, and we reject the conflation of solidarity with the Palestinian cause and the issue of anti-Semitism, which we reject based on our values and principles. We also announce our readiness to work with President Donald Trump of the United States, and with Saudi Arabia, France, the United Nations, and all partners to implement the peace plan approved at this conference within a defined timeline and under international oversight and guarantees, paving the way for just peace and comprehensive regional cooperation. In this context, we call on Israel to immediately sit at the negotiating table to stop the bloodshed and achieve just and comprehensive peace in the region. And I say to the Israeli people: Our future and your future lie in peace; let the violence and war stop. It is the right of our generations to enjoy security and freedom, for the peoples of our region to live in lasting peace and good neighborliness. I take this opportunity to wish all Jews in the world a good year on the occasion of the Hebrew New Year. And to our patient and steadfast Palestinian people in their homeland and everywhere, I say that the dawn of freedom and independence is coming; this day is the day of the State of Palestine and the beginning of the peace process in the Middle East, and we soon call for an international conference to achieve this. And peace be upon you.