Abbas reassures UN on Palestinian unity govt

UNITED NATIONS, Sep 22: Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas assured world governments any national unity government he negotiated with Hamas would recognize Israel's right to exist and renounce violence.

''Any future Palestinian government'' would honor all past agreements the Palestine Liberation Organization and the Palestinian National Authority have committed to, he told the 192-nation UN General Assembly.

These include letters between the Palestinians and Israel in which the PLO agreed to recognize Israel, renounce violence and commit to negotiations aimed at an independent Palestinian state alongside the state of Israel, he said.

Abbas has been negotiating a unity government between his Fatah movement and the Islamic militant group Hamas, which took power in March after a sweeping election victory, leading the West to cut off most Palestinian aid.

Hamas has appeared to resist embracing the conditions set by the West for aid to resume.

Abbas said that if a unity government led to a resumption of peace talks, the negotiations would be under the jurisdiction of the PLO, which he heads. In addition, any results would be submitted either to a national referendum or the Palestinian National Council.

''Any future government will commit to imposing security and order, to ending the phenomena of multiple militias, indiscipline and chaos, and to the rule of law,'' he said.

The commitments ''should suffice to lift the unjust siege imposed on our people, which has inflicted extensive damage on our society, its livelihood and the means of its growth and development,'' he said.

He recalled the plea issued from the General Assembly podium 32 years ago by the late PLO Chairman Yasser Arafat, who pulled out a gun and an olive branch, saying ''Do not let the olive branch fall from my hand.'' ''And here I am repeating the same call: Do not let the olive branch fall from my hand, do not let the olive branch fall from my hand,'' he said.

Reuters