Erekat: UNSC to vote Monday on draft demanding Israeli withdrawal from West Bank

The Palestinian Authority's top peace negotiator, Saeb Erekat, said on Friday that Ramallah will submit its draft resolution to the UN Security Council demanding an end to the Israeli presence in the West Bank this coming Monday. Erekat said that the draft resolution has been altered and amended. The final draft has yet to be released for public consumption. Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas threatened on Tuesday to sever all ties with Israel if the statehood resolution presented to the UN Security Council last week did not receive approval. Speaking to reporters in the Algeria, Abbas said the Palestinians were “determined to restore their rights, including the right of return for refugees and the release of all Palestinians from Israeli prison.” He added, “We won't surrender to the occupation's policy of dominance and repression. The Palestinian cause is the key to peace and war in the Middle East and the basis for maintaining security and peace.” Abbas repeated his threat to dissolve the PA if the latest statehood bid at the Security Council failed. “If we fail, we will halt all dealings with the Israeli government and ask it to assume its responsibilities as an occupation state,” he said. He also repeated his call for a “peaceful and popular resistance against settlements and the racist separation wall.” Abbas mocked Israelis who have branded him a “diplomatic terrorist,” adding that Palestinian diplomacy had been successful in isolating Israel's “expansionist policy.” Meanwhile, Arab League Secretary- General Nabil Elarabi said he was considering dispatching a delegation to Washington to urge the US administration to refrain from vetoing the Palestinian statehood resolution. He said that Arab League foreign ministers were scheduled to meet on January 15 to discuss ways of mustering worldwide support for the resolution, which calls for setting a timeline for an Israeli withdrawal to the pre- 1967 lines.

Erekat: UNSC to vote Monday on draft demanding Israeli withdrawal from West Bank

Erekat said that the draft resolution has been altered and amended. The final draft has yet to be released for public consumption.

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