PCC to call Palestine an 'occupied state'

CAIRO – 25 December 2017: "The Palestinian Central Council (PCC) will discuss during its upcoming meeting in mid-January declaring Palestine an 'occupied state'," Fatah official Azzam al-Ahmad told Pan-Arab newspaper al-Hayat on Monday.

Ahmad revealed that the Palestinian Liberation Organization’s PCC will carry out a comprehensive revision of the peace talks and discuss the necessary procedures to be taken in the current stage. "The PLO Central Council will convene in Ramallah in the West Bank," he added.

"Hamas and Islamic Jihad movements have not confirmed yet their participation in the upcoming meeting," Ahmad pointed out.

He revealed that Hamas had expressed its willingness to hold that meeting in Beirut, but Fatah insisted on convening in Ramallah. "The International Criminal Court may be our next resort to respond to the American announcement on Jerusalem," Ahmad stated.

Ahmad added that, “Egypt’s Azhar will hold an Islamic conference on January 16 to discuss the consequences of the Jerusalem crisis,” confirming that Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas will meet with European foreign ministers in Brussels on January 22 to discuss the political developments in Jerusalem.

He stressed that Washington’s role as a broker in the peace talks “Ended after being a party in the Palestinian-Israeli conflict.”

On December 6, U.S. President Donald Trump recognized Jerusalem as the capital city of Israel and announced the relocation of the American Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. This decision was condemned and rejected by all Arab and Islamic countries as well as most of Western and Asian countries.

Hundreds of protesters took to streets to denounce the American announcement on Jerusalem in different global cities and capitals.

On Sunday, Guatemalan President Jimmy Morales said he had given instructions to move the Central American country's embassy in Israel to Jerusalem, according to Reuters.

On December 19, Palestine’s Safa news agency revealed that Israel planned to inaugurate a synagogue near Al-Buraq Wall (Western Wall).

On December 21, the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) overwhelmingly passed a non-binding resolution condemning Trump’s decision and called on states not to move their diplomatic missions to Jerusalem.