 The
Arab American National Museum
Survey:
Arab and Jewish Americans
Human Rights in
the US
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For Immediate Release
AAF welcomes Palestinians' vote and urges support for peaceful settlement to
the Palestine-Israel conflict
Paterson, NJ, January 26, 2006: Hamas, the Islamic Resistance Movement, appears
to have won a majority vote to form the next Palestinian government in the West
Bank and Gaza Strip. The American Arab Forum respects the choices
made by the Palestinian people and urges all factions to unite their collective
powers to build an inclusive Palestinian government. This is an historic
development not only in the Palestinian national struggle for self-determination
but also for the prospects for a peaceful Middle East. An estimated 78% of
registered Palestinian voters voted for the new Palestinian Legislature. Not
only will Hamas's victory affect the Palestinian political landscape, but also
it could have far-reaching implications on the civil and social fabric of the
Palestinian people.
Aref Assaf, President of American Arab Forum, expressed his satisfaction at the
resoluteness of the Palestinian people to engage in peaceful and democratic
means to chose their government even though they remain shackled by the
suffocating hand of the Israeli military occupation. He attributed the
Hamas victory to the failure of the ruling Fatah Party to deliver on its promise
of building a Palestinian state, for its failure to build Palestinian
institutions catering to the needs of the improvished Palestinian people
and for its lack of transparency, cronyism, corruption and internal
factionalism. “We call upon all the Palestinian factions to collaborate towards
forming a unity government encompassing all credible Palestinian views. Even
though current peace process negotiations have failed to provide peace or
security for the Palestinians or the Israelis, we still believe that only
peaceful negotiations can resolve the outstanding issues between the two warring
parties.” To this end,” Mr. Assaf added, “we call upon Israel and the United
States to respect the democratic choice of the Palestinian people and to
encourage a new direction towards reconciliation.”
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