RAMALLAH, September 21, 2011 (WAFA) – President Mahmoud Abbas Wednesday welcomed the West Bank rallies that came out in support of the United Nations bid for membership, describing them as referendum on going to the Security Council to seek full membership of a Palestinian state at the international body.
Presidential spokesman, Nabil Abu Rudeineh, said the mass rallies supporting Abbas’ UN efforts are considered as a “national referendum in which the people express their support for the Palestinian president and leadership.”
Palestinians Wednesday rallied in several West Bank cities where tens of thousands came out in a show of support for the UN bid.
In Ramallah, scouts marched from the presidential headquarters to the center of the city, where they were met with thousands who had gathered to mark what many people described as a historical day.
The rallies were supposed to coincide with the opening of the UN General Assembly’s 66th session in New York
Tens of thousands gathered in the city center, raising Palestinian flags as speakers marked the importance of winning a UN membership.
Presidential secretary Tayyeb Abdul Rahim said the Palestinians were tired to having many rounds of talks without results, which prompted them to seek the UN alternative.
Al-Ashiqeen Palestinian musical group played nationalist songs to the crowds who gathered to hear their music that started with the Palestinian revolution in the 1970s.
Similar rallies took place in Bethlehem , Hebron , Jenin and Tulkarem with the largest being in Nablus
M.G./M.S.
