Abbas tells sixth Fatah convention in Bethlehem: Peace is our choice, resistance our right

BETHLEHEM - Palestinians have a legitimate right to engage in "resistance" against Israel, but "we must not stain our legitimate struggle with terror," Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas said at the opening of his Fatah movement's sixth convention yesterday.

"Resistance" is the term usually used in Palestinian discourse for all forms of violent attacks, including suicide bombings, as well as nonviolent protest.

"Although peace is our choice, we reserve the right to resistance, legitimate under international law," Abbas told the gathering in Bethlehem's Terra Sancta school.

However, he added, the Palestinians should stick to negotiations as long as any "shred of hope" for an agreement remains.

His comments echoed remarks by another senior Fatah official, Jibril Rajoub. Asked by a reporter about the large picture of a young boy armed with a rifle hanging in the convention hall, Rajoub responded that Fatah had never given up the option of armed struggle against Israel, and never would.

Abbas, who spoke for about two hours, attacked both Israel and Hamas at length and blamed the former for the failure of the Oslo accords. He also said the economic improvements promised by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu were not enough; there must be genuine progress in the peace process.

The convention, whose main purpose is to elect new members of Fatah's two leadership bodies, was attended by more than 2,000 delegates. Several foreign governments sent observers to the event, including China, whose delegate even addressed the gathering.

One factor that had weighed on the convention was Hamas' refusal to allow several hundred Fatah members from the Gaza Strip to attend. But one of the convention organizers, Nabil Sha'ath, told Haaretz this problem had been resolved by reserving one-third of the seats on both the Central Committee and the Revolutionary Council for members from Gaza. In addition, he said, Gazan delegates would be able to vote via online.

The vote for both bodies will be held tomorrow morning. Delegates will also vote on a new platform for the movement; the 41-page draft was officially published on Monday.

Some 100 candidates are contending for 21 seats on the Central Committee, which is Fatah's main executive body. They include prominent Fatah leaders such as Abbas, Marwan Barghouti, Mohammed Dahlan, Rajoub and Ahmed Qureia. Hundreds more are vying for one of the 120 seats on the Revolutionary Council, which is the organization's second most important decision-making institution.

This is Fatah's first convention in 20 years: The last one was held in Tunis in 1989. Its main goal is to revive the organization's flagging popularity via a change in leadership, as much of its existing leadership is viewed by ordinary Palestinians as corrupt.

PA security forces were deployed all over Bethlehem to prevent clashes and possible sabotage by Hamas. Pictures of Fatah's deceased founder and longtime leader, Yasser Arafat, and posters bearing slogans such as "Resistance is a legitimate right against the occupation" were hung in Bethlehem's main streets.

In other news, the pan-Arab newspaper Asharq al-Awsat reported yesterday that the Fatah-dominated PA has decided to freeze cash transfers to the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip.

The newspaper said the decision was made following an emergency meeting called by Abbas, but would be announced only following the conclusion of the Fatah convention.