New York // Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas declared yesterday that he was no longer bound by agreements signed with Israel, which he accused of sabotaging efforts to find a two-state solution.
Mr Abbas was addressing world leaders at the UN General Assembly in New York, shortly before raising the Palestinian flag over the UN headquarters in a symbolic step towards winning full membership of the world body.
"Palestine, which is an observer state in the United Nations, deserves full recognition and full membership," he said.
Mr Abbas, 80, had promised to deliver a "bombshell" and gave his clearest statement yet that the Oslo accords, which set out a path to peace and was signed in 1993, had been killed off by Israeli expansion and abuses.
"We declare that as long as Israel refuses to commit to the agreements signed with us, which render us a pro-forma authority without real powers, and as long as Israel refuses to cease settlement activities and to release of the Palestinian prisoners in accordance with our agreements, Israel has left us no choice but to insist that we will not remain the only ones committed to the implementation of these agreements, while Israel continuously violates them," he said.
Minutes later, Mr Abbas raised the Palestinian flag to the applause of diplomats and ministers in the UN's rose garden, on the far side of the complex from the flags of member states.
He dedicated the ceremony to those killed, jailed and wounded in the struggle for statehood.
"Dawn is coming no doubt, and the day for raising the flag of the state of Palestine will be coming soon on top of Jerusalem, capital of our Palestinian state."
The symbolic move was made after the UN passed a resolution this month allowing Palestine and the Vatican, which have observer status, to fly their flags at the UN.
For its supporters, the resolution was the latest step in a legal and diplomatic campaign for full UN membership.
It follows Palestine's membership in 2011 to the world cultural body Unesco, its arrival at the UN as a non-member observer state in 2012, and its accession to the International Criminal Court in April.
UN secretary general Ban Ki-moon said the flag served as a reminder of the Palestinian Authority's commitment to winning full statehood.
"It is a day of hope," Mr Ban said. "It is a reminder that symbols are important, and that a symbol can lead to action in the right direction."
But the red, black, white and green flag flies on the far side of the complex from the main entrance, where the UN's 195 member states have their flags.
Richard Gowan, a fellow with New York University's centre on international co-operation, said the flag was another small step towards statehood but was far less significant than joining the ICC or Unesco.
"This is a consolation prize for the Palestinians," Mr Gowan said. "The Security Council is unlikely to push Israel towards a two-state solution.
"Raising the flag is really just a symbolic concession."
foreign.desk@thenational.ae
