Fatah official Tirawi: Fatah won’t throw down the rifle
"The [Fatah] Shabiba student movement at the Al-Quds Open University held a gathering today, 'Welcoming the new students and renewing the oath of loyalty to President Mahmoud Abbas – gathering [in support] of the state no. 194'.
Present at the gathering were Fatah Central Committee members Abbas Zaki and Tawfiq Tirawi… The participants at the gathering waved Palestinian flags and keffiyehs, and called to continue the struggle up until the liberation of Palestine, the liberation of the prisoners from the occupation prisons, and the establishment of the independent state with Jerusalem as its capital… In a speech which he delivered on behalf of the President [Abbas]… Zaki said: 'The American administration must understand that our courageous prisoners are the most precious thing that we have, and that the freedom of [Gilad] Shalit is not more important than their freedom. Therefore, the time has come for the USA to come to its senses and not to apply a double standard concerning our cause and our just rights.'… In a speech which he delivered on behalf of the Fatah Central Committee, Tawfiq Tirawi said that the US is the principal enemy of the Palestinian people, because it supports Israel's oppression of us. He said, 'Before casting shoes at Israel, we should cast shoes at its agents… He emphasized that Fatah has not and will not cast away the rifle, for since the beginning of its activity it has been the leader of the Palestinian national enterprise, and it will remain so."
Present at the gathering were Fatah Central Committee members Abbas Zaki and Tawfiq Tirawi… The participants at the gathering waved Palestinian flags and keffiyehs, and called to continue the struggle up until the liberation of Palestine, the liberation of the prisoners from the occupation prisons, and the establishment of the independent state with Jerusalem as its capital… In a speech which he delivered on behalf of the President [Abbas]… Zaki said: 'The American administration must understand that our courageous prisoners are the most precious thing that we have, and that the freedom of [Gilad] Shalit is not more important than their freedom. Therefore, the time has come for the USA to come to its senses and not to apply a double standard concerning our cause and our just rights.'… In a speech which he delivered on behalf of the Fatah Central Committee, Tawfiq Tirawi said that the US is the principal enemy of the Palestinian people, because it supports Israel's oppression of us. He said, 'Before casting shoes at Israel, we should cast shoes at its agents… He emphasized that Fatah has not and will not cast away the rifle, for since the beginning of its activity it has been the leader of the Palestinian national enterprise, and it will remain so."