In Letter to Biden, PA and Hamas Commit to Two-state Solution on 1967 Lines

February 22, 2021

by: Elior Levy

Monday, 22 February 2021 | The Palestinian Authority (PA) sent an official letter to the White House claiming that all factions, including Hamas [the terror organization ruling the Gaza Strip], were committed to the establishment of a Palestinian state along the 1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital.

The letter was delivered by Hussein Al-Sheikh, the PA’s Head of the General Authority of Civil Affairs, to US President Joe Biden’s Deputy Assistant Secretary for Israeli and Palestinian Affairs Hady Amr.

The provisions listed in the memorandum were all agreed upon during a meeting of the various Palestinian factions in September.

The letter also stated that all the factions, including Hamas and Islamic Jihad [the second largest terror group operating in the Gaza Strip], were committed to international law standards, that the PLO is the political umbrella and the legitimate sole representative for the Palestinian people and that the results of the Palestinian elections will be respected and that a peaceful transfer of power will take place afterward.

The memo also asserted the factions’ continued commitment to “popular peaceful resistance” until a Palestinian state is founded.

With parliamentary and presidential elections set to take place on May 22 and July 31 respectively, more than 2.6 million Palestinians registered last week on the electoral rolls—over 93% of eligible voters.

The memorandum reinforces the assessment that the elections within the PA are meant to rebuild relations between Ramallah and the new US administration.

On Saturday, PA President Mahmoud Abbas issued a decree ordering to lift all sanctions on freedom of expression ahead of the elections, banning all police pursuits and detentions in the West Bank [Judea and Samaria] and the Gaza Strip for “reasons related to freedom of expression and political affiliation,” with prisoners held on such justifications to be freed.

Hamas welcomed the order, allowing their movement to campaign in the West Bank.

Posted on February 22, 2021

Source: (This article was originally published by Ynetnews on February 21, 2021. Time-related language has been modified to reflect our publication today. See original article at this link.)

Photo Credit: Aaron Burden/unsplash.com