The State of Qatar renewed Friday its position of supporting the Palestinian cause by providing political and developmental support to the Palestinian people until they regain all their rights.
Qatar stressed that comprehensive and fair peace in the Middle-East is the strategic option, and can only be accomplished by ending the Israeli occupation to Palestinian and Arab land in a set timeframe, and by empowering the Palestinian people by establishing the State of Palestine with East Al Quds as its capital on the borders of 1967, in accordance with the Arab Peace Initiative and international resolutions.
This came in Qatar's statement read by HE the Permanent Representative of Qatar to the United Nations in Geneva Ambassador Ali Khalfan Al Mansouri at the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) during its meeting on article 10 on its assistance to the Palestinian people.
HE Al Mansouri stressed the State of Qatar's commitment to providing developmental and humanitarian assistance to improve the Palestinians' living conditions in the West Bank and Gaza. The State of Qatar provided $1.2 billion worth of support of the last 8 years in vital fields such as education, electricity, infrastructure, housing, and job creation. He also noted that the State of Qatar pledged to grant $150 million over six months in support of efforts to contain the Coronavirus pandemic (Covid-19). Permanent Representative to the United Nations in Geneva expressed the State of Qatar's appreciation to UNCTAD for its effort in preparing a report on its support to the Palestinian people.
He condemned Israel's (as the occupying entity) undermining of UNCTAD's efforts by making the movement of UNCTAD employees into and outside of Palestine difficult. He expressed the State of Qatar's concern regarding the report's assessment of the economic and social conditions in Palestine, which the report said was deteriorating. He noted that this deterioration was a result of the Israeli occupation's policies and restrictions it places on trade, in addition to the dangerous repercussions of the Covid-19 pandemic. His Excellency stressed that the Israeli occupation's control of two-thirds of Palestinian tax revenues and the entry of Palestinian financial resources into the Israeli treasury undermines financial stability in Palestine and adversely affects its economy. He added that Palestinian development cannot be achieved as long as Israeli occupation and illegal settlement activities continue. HE Al Mansouri highlighted the lack of freedom of movement of people and goods in the besieged Gaza strip.
He praised the important work carried out by the UNCTAD to support Palestinian development, calling on the international community to allocate more resources to help the Palestinian people and to help build Palestinian institutions, in order to build an independent and stable economy.
HE Ambassador Al Mansouri expressed his condolences to the leadership and people of Kuwait on the death of Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, an Arab icon renowned for his humanitarian and diplomatic efforts in the world and particularly in the region.
HE the Permanent Representative of Qatar to the United Nations in Geneva Ambassador Ali Khalfan Al Mansouri speaks at the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD).
