U.N. Chief Says Palestinian Statehood ‘Long Overdue’
The Palestinian people are “long overdue” in their quest for an independent state, United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said on Friday, ahead of a Palestinian push for statehood in the UN planned for later this month.
Ban’s comments came a day after Palestinian activists launched a campaign for the recognition of a Palestinian state in the United Nations. The move contradicts earlier reports that the Palestinian Authority was the one who issued the request.
In a letter addressed to Ban’s Ramallah office, Palestinian activists urged the leader of the international community to “exert all possible efforts toward the achievement of the Palestinian people’s just demands.”
Speaking on Friday, the UN chief was quoted by the French news agency AFP as saying he fully supported Palestinian statehood: “The two state vision where Israel and Palestinians can live… side by side in peace and security – that is a still a valid vision and I fully support it.”
“And I support also the statehood of Palestinians; an independent, sovereign state of Palestine. It has been long overdue,” Ban told reporters in Canberra, adding that a “recognition of a state is something to be determined by the member states.”
For more, go to Haaretz.com
I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning journalism this Passover.
In this age of misinformation, our work is needed like never before. We report on the news that matters most to American Jews, driven by truth, not ideology.
At a time when newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall. That means for the first time in our 126-year history, Forward journalism is free to everyone, everywhere. With an ongoing war, rising antisemitism, and a flood of disinformation that may affect the upcoming election, we believe that free and open access to Jewish journalism is imperative.
Readers like you make it all possible. Right now, we’re in the middle of our Passover Pledge Drive and we need 500 people to step up and make a gift to sustain our trustworthy, independent journalism.
Make a gift of any size and become a Forward member today. You’ll support our mission to tell the American Jewish story fully and fairly.
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO
Join our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
Our Goal: 500 gifts during our Passover Pledge Drive!
