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Israeli Occupation Must End in Order to Achieve Mideast Peace

The King of Jordan today issued an urgent appeal to leaders gathered at the United Nations for attention to Israel's occupation of Palestine, which he said is fundamental to achieving peace across the Middle East.

"Never has it been more important for the world community to act decisively for peace in my region," King Abdullah II Bin Al Hussein told the General Assembly's general debate.

"The region's contemporary crises are outgrowths of a central grievance felt throughout the Middle East and indeed the world. That grievance, plain and simply, is Israeli occupation and the denial, over decades, of Palestinian rights," he said, warning that "Until we end that wrong, conflict will breed more conflict, year after year."

He called for immediate efforts to help with reconstruction in Lebanon, but stressed at the same time that solving the core of the Arab-Israeli conflict requires the restoration of internationally recognized Palestinian rights.

King Abdullah recalled the 2002 proposal put forward by the League of Arab States which would guarantee Israel's security and end the occupation of Palestine, resulting in "a viable, independent Palestinian state, living side-by-side with a pure Israel."

Peace requires concerted action by all parties, he said. "Events show clearly that there can be no unilateral solution to the conflict. There must be a genuine partnership among all parties, in the context of international legality and justice."

Source: United Nations