Gaza, October 05: The acting Palestinian Authority (PA) chief has launched a campaign to convince his critics he is not responsible for dropping a UN resolution against Israel over war crimes.
The Palestinian Authority requested the UN Human Rights Council to defer a UN vote over Israeli war crimes in the Gaza Strip.
Mahmoud Abbas, facing an unprecedented wave of condemnation and accusations of treason from other Palestinian factions, has ordered the establishment of a commission of inquiry into the issue.
The measure killed the Palestinians hope to pass a resolution against Israel in the UN Human Rights Council.
An unnamed PA minister scoffed at Abbas’ decision to establish the commission, the Jerusalem Post reported.
“What’s the president [Abbas] trying to tell us? that he didn’t make the decision to kill the resolution that would have seen the UN endorse the findings of the fact-finding commission into the Gaza war?” the minister asked.
“Well, if he didn’t make the decision, then we want to know who’s running the Palestinian Authority. If he was responsible for the [deferral] decision, then this is a very serious matter. If he knew, it’s bad; if he didn’t know, it’s even worse,” JP quoted him as saying.
Members of Abbas’ Fatah faction also condemned the move and called for an emergency meeting of the Fatah Central Committee to discuss the matter.
PA Social Welfare Minister Majeda al-Masri described the contradictory statements as an embarrassment for the PA. She also condemned the PA’s move and called for an investigation into the reasons behind the decision, Jerusalem Post reported on Sunday.
Palestinian Economy Minister Bassem Khuri resigned on Saturday to protest the “Palestinian Authority’s agreement not to discuss the Goldstone Report,” an official close to him said.
The commission will be headed by Hana Amireh, a member of the PLO Executive Committee. The two other members of the commission will be Azmi Shuaibi, head of the non-governmental Coalition for Accountability and Integrity (AMAN), and Rami Hamdallah, secretary-general of the Palestinian Central Elections Committee.
The commission has been tasked to present its findings to Abbas within two weeks.
Palestinian factions and human rights groups have criticized Abbas over the PA decision, saying that he has betrayed Palestinians.
—–Agencies