Popular referendum guarantees rights of Palestinians

A high-ranking Iranian official says a popular referendum can guarantee the rights of the Palestinian nation, noting that the White House pays no attention to solutions that acknowledge the rights of Palestinians.

“During the talks [with member of the Fatah Central Committee Jibril Rajoub in Tehran earlier this week] it was stressed that Tehran regards a referendum with the participation of all Palestinians as an effective solution to the historical tragedy of Palestinians,” Deputy Foreign Minister for Arab and African Affairs Hossein Amir Abdollahian said on Saturday.

He added, “What secures the rights of the Palestinian people against the crimes perpetrated by the Zionist regime (of Israel) is the…preservation of unity, and resistance.”

He further pointed to the talks between the Palestinian Authority (PA) and Israeli official as well as repeated trips by US officials to Israel, saying it is clear that the White House will pay no attention to a solution which recognizes the rights of the Palestinian nation.

On January 25, Palestinians in the occupied West Bank cities of Nablus and al-Khalil (Hebron) protested against US Secretary of State John Kerry’s proposals for the so-called peace talks with the Israeli regime.

Protesters called on the Palestinian Authority to reject the proposals, which they say are aimed at destroying the Palestinian cause. They added that the talks deny Palestinians the right of return and allow expansion of illegal Israeli settlements in the occupied territories.

Israel’s settlement expansion policy is one of the sticking points in the talks. Palestinians demand that East al-Quds (Jerusalem) be their capital and that Israel recognize borders based on the 1967 lines which existed before the Six-Day War, when Israel captured the West Bank and East al-Quds.

Tel Aviv refuses to return to the 1967 borders and is unwilling to discuss the issue of East al-Quds.