Israel's intentions of 'displacement, subjugation, or death' of Gazans are clear: Palestinian envoy

By Merve Aydogan

HAMILTON, Canada (AA) – The Palestinian ambassador to the UN, Riyad Mansour, on Friday condemned Israel's atrocities against the Palestinian people, saying the Tel Aviv government no longer hides its true intentions, which include "displacement, subjugation, or death."

"It took 75 years for the United Nations to recognize and commemorate the Nakba, but the Nakba is not a historical event. It is a terrible reality still endured by our people, as Israel has yet to abandon its plans to push us out of history and geography," Mansour said at a commemorative panel discussion titled "1948-2024: The Ongoing Palestinian Nakba."

The commemoration of the "Nakba" (catastrophe), which refers to the mass displacement and dispossession of Palestinians from their lands, comes "at a time where one of the most terrible chapters of this ongoing Nakba is underway," the envoy said, highlighting Israel's ongoing bombing and starvation of people in the Gaza Strip.

Palestinians commemorate May 15 as Nakba Day as Israel declared independence on May 14, 1948, occupying Palestinians' lands after forcing them to flee their homes.

"The Israeli government no longer hides its true intentions," he said, adding that Palestinians are facing three options: "displacement, subjugation, or death."

Despite Israel's denial of Palestine's existence, rights, and statehood, Mansour stressed that "there is now universal recognition of the Palestinian people, and soon it will be matched by universal recognition of our state."

"There is a global consensus on the imperative of ending the Israeli occupation, fulfilment of our national and human rights, including the independence of our state and having two democratic states, Palestine and Israel lived side by side in peace and security on the 1967 borders," he added.

The Palestinian ambassador concluded by thanking university students across the US and in all corners of the globe for "their bravery and principled position, calling for the end of the war and the disarming of the Israeli army."