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| By Ellis Shuman February 22, 2001 |
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Salim Al-Za'anun, Chairman of the Palestinian National Council has threatened to contest Israel's membership in the United Nations. In addition Al-Za'anun declared that Israel's Knesset building is on Palestinian land and called for its removal.
Al-Za'anun's charges appeared in an article in Wednesday's Al-Ayyam Arabic daily newspaper, which was translated and forwarded by the Palestinian Media Watch organization. In the article Al-Za'anun said "the Palestinian Liberation Organization will contest Israel's membership in the UN if it continues to reject [UN] Resolution 194 regarding the return of [Palestinian] refugees, and if it refuses to withdraw from the Palestinian territories conquered in 1967."
Za'anun further threatened "[the PLO] will retreat from its acceptance of Resolution 242 and the amendment of the Palestinian National Charter if Israel continues to ignore the rights of the Palestinian nation."
In the article Za'anun added that "the Knesset stands on Palestinian land; it must be removed so that the permanent seat of the [Palestinian] National Council may be erected there."
Za'anun was referring to the village of Sheikh Bader, destroyed in the 1948 War of Independence, which was located where the Knesset stands today.
According to Al-Ayyam, Za'anun's declarations were made during a ceremony launching the 1,000,000-signature campaign to return the refugees, held in Dir Al-Balak, a Gaza Strip refugee camp.
In an additional development, the Palestinian Authority has renewed a diplomatic campaign to pressure the United Nations Security Council to send observers to the Palestinian areas. Yasser Arafat's adviser Nabil Abu Rudaineh told The Jerusalem Post this week that the Authority hopes "the UN Security Council will come to the conclusion that it is necessary to send UN troops to protect the Palestinians."
The statements were made after the departure of the United Nations Human Rights Commission fact-finding tour, which was boycotted by Israel.
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