The Palestinian Authority prime minister reaffirmed the Palestinians’ right to resist Israeli occupation.
Salam Fayyad told reporters in Cairo on Monday that Palestinians have a legitimate right to resist Israeli “occupation” even if the terms “resistance” and “armed struggle” do not appear in the new P.A. platform.
Fayyad, who came under heavy criticism over the weekend by Palestinians incensed that he eliminated mention of “armed resistance” in the new P.A. platform, explained that the term “resistance” was excluded because it too often was associated with “armed struggle.”
“What is the essence of resistance, especially in light of the current occupation?” Fayyad asked at the Cairo news conference. “Does it not begin with all possible efforts to strengthen the permanence of the Palestinian citizens on their land? That is precisely the government’s agenda.
“We are certainly an occupied people, and resistance is a legitimate right for the Palestinian people as an occupied people.”
