Abbas sends conflicting messages: All of Israel is "occupied" vs. areas under Israel since 1967 are "occupied"
Two separate Facebook pages in the name of "President Abbas" posted two versions of the same letter written by Abbas. One letter defined all of Israel as "occupied lands," whereas the other letter defined the areas under Israel since 1967 as "occupied":
Mahmoud Abbas' Facebook page #1 [http://www.facebook.com/pages/President-Mahmoud-Abbas-/126646497354105] dated Oct. 11, 2012:
"Letter from His Excellency the President [Abbas] to the residents of Gaza
My dear friends,
Since I returned from the UN where I spoke, and stressed our final decision to submit a request to recognize Palestine as a non-member state in the [UN] General Assembly, we and others are approached and pressured again and again to retract this step, and to convince the countries in the world not to vote. The economic pressures that are put on us by several parties are a result of this decision only.
The [UN's] recognition will not liberate the land the following day, but will prove that we are right that our land is occupied and not disputed [territory], and this applies to all the territories that Israel occupied before June 1967 (i.e., all of Israel).
I want you to know that this is a great political and diplomatic battle, and I am sorry that some Palestinian voices do not understand or do not want to understand the importance of this matter.
My dear friends in our beloved [Gaza] Strip,
I'm a very touched by the messages I receive from you. I want you to know that you are all in my heart, and that Gaza of Hashim (i.e., an honorable name for Gaza. Hashim was Islam's prophet Muhammad's grandfather) is a dear part of this homeland, which has sacrificed thousands of Martyrs (Shahids), injured and prisoners during the journey of our struggle to end the occupation and to establish our independent state whose capital is our eternal Jerusalem. I recognize the difficulties that you are experiencing: blockade that does not allow you movement, limitations of freedom of opinion, lack of work places and suffering as a result of Israel's never-ending attacks. I know as you know, my dear friends, that the rift [between Fatah and Hamas] must end immediately."
Mahmoud Abbas' Facebook page #2 [http://www.facebook.com/President.Mahmoud.Abbas?fref=ts] dated Oct. 10, 2012:
The part of the letter with the text defining "occupied territory":
Mahmoud Abbas' Facebook page #1 [http://www.facebook.com/pages/President-Mahmoud-Abbas-/126646497354105] dated Oct. 11, 2012:
"Letter from His Excellency the President [Abbas] to the residents of Gaza
My dear friends,
Since I returned from the UN where I spoke, and stressed our final decision to submit a request to recognize Palestine as a non-member state in the [UN] General Assembly, we and others are approached and pressured again and again to retract this step, and to convince the countries in the world not to vote. The economic pressures that are put on us by several parties are a result of this decision only.
The [UN's] recognition will not liberate the land the following day, but will prove that we are right that our land is occupied and not disputed [territory], and this applies to all the territories that Israel occupied before June 1967 (i.e., all of Israel).
I want you to know that this is a great political and diplomatic battle, and I am sorry that some Palestinian voices do not understand or do not want to understand the importance of this matter.
My dear friends in our beloved [Gaza] Strip,
I'm a very touched by the messages I receive from you. I want you to know that you are all in my heart, and that Gaza of Hashim (i.e., an honorable name for Gaza. Hashim was Islam's prophet Muhammad's grandfather) is a dear part of this homeland, which has sacrificed thousands of Martyrs (Shahids), injured and prisoners during the journey of our struggle to end the occupation and to establish our independent state whose capital is our eternal Jerusalem. I recognize the difficulties that you are experiencing: blockade that does not allow you movement, limitations of freedom of opinion, lack of work places and suffering as a result of Israel's never-ending attacks. I know as you know, my dear friends, that the rift [between Fatah and Hamas] must end immediately."
[Facebook page in the name of PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas, Oct. 11, 2012
and partially reprinted in Al-Hayat Al-Jadida, Oct. 17, 2012]
Mahmoud Abbas' Facebook page #2 [http://www.facebook.com/President.Mahmoud.Abbas?fref=ts] dated Oct. 10, 2012:
The part of the letter with the text defining "occupied territory":
"The [UN's] recognition will not liberate the land the following day, but will prove that we are right that our land is occupied and not disputed territory, and this applies to all the territories that Israel occupied June 1967."
[PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas' official Facebook page, Oct. 10, 2012]
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