New York - Saba:
The Arab Group at the United Nations on Friday called for rejecting the idea of displacing the Palestinians from the Gaza Strip "categorically".
This came at a press conference held by Kuwait's Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Ambassador Tariq Al-Bannai, with his Palestinian and Turkish counterparts, Riyad Mansour, Ahmed Yildiz, and ambassadors from a number of Asian and African countries.
Al-Bannai stressed that the proposal to displace Palestinians from Gaza must be "categorically rejected."
He added that "the Arab Group categorically rejects such displacement, which constitutes a flagrant violation of Article 49 of the Fourth Geneva Convention of 1949, which prohibits the forcible transfer of population from occupied territories, regardless of the reason."
Al-Bannai said they appreciate the "firm position of the international community in affirming the illegitimacy" of such proposals.
"It is necessary for these proposals to be rejected collectively and unequivocally by the member states of the United Nations," he added.
Mansour said: "We have no other homeland but Palestine, and we will rebuild the Gaza Strip and Palestine."
He expressed his hope that the Israeli "illegal occupation" will end soon, and said that they will all celebrate the independence of the State of Palestine.