Doha, Qatar, (SANA)- President Bashar al-Assad stressed that the Gaza emergency summit, "despite the difficulty of convening it and the hope that it would be attended by everybody, expressed to our people and the world that we are with ourselves not with our enemy, with our people against the occupation, with the children, women and elderly martyrs, and before all of that with the heroic resistance men everywhere."
In a speech at the Gaza emergency summit in Doha on Friday, President al-Assad added that "we extend salute to whoever gave this event a value, salute to whoever sought and created the conditions for it, and most sincere salute, before and after that, to the steadfastness of the people in Gaza and to all of the resistance men against the occupation."
His Excellency said that "in these difficult moments, our responsibility as Arab leaders seems great in offering serious and decisive answers to the puzzling questions in the mind of every Arab citizen: How can we save the Palestinian people from the talons of this arrogant brutality…How can we as an Arab nation take the proper reaction to the crimes of the occupation as we see the bodies of children and their dismembered bodies strewn everywhere, and see in the eyes of those who survived the features of panic mixed with the hope that bold hands would stretch out to them to rescue them form inevitable fate after they lost safety in brave, war-exhausted Gaza.
How can we do all of that at a time where we were not able to hold our summit before the passage of more than twenty days of the massacre due to considerations known to everybody… is it logical that we distance our feelings from those of the millions of people who feel deep worry for the sufferings of their brothers in Gaza who in turn hope to get real solidarity for them…can we be on the right side while our readings and evaluations are on one side and the feelings of our people on the other?
The destiny of Gaza is our destiny as a whole. We have to take resolutions that produce actions
President al-Assad added: "But in all cases, to arrive late is better than not to arrive at all… this applies to our summit… despite the public anger for holding it late, and despite realistic and not exaggerated hopes embraced by our people towards the Arab summits, which reflect our official Arab situation and greatly contradict the public case in its response to the various challenges we face over the past few years… despite all of that, the convening of this emergency summit was an urgent public demand by the vast majority of the citizens on the Arab arena as we see it today at the climax of its reaction and anger, along with the Islamic and international arenas, against Israel's ugliness.
If it's taken for granted that we have to embrace the same feelings, then we as officials have to be in the lead by turning these feelings into action and resolutions that produce deeds.
The Israeli holocaust will engulf all of us as Arabs unless we extinguish it now
In previous summits we talked about already outlined plots, but today we are speaking about plots being applied… we were warning against approaching the point of danger… but today the holocaust not only started but is also on its way to move to the next stages which will engulf all of us as Arabs unless we extinguish it now… the messages we receive from the Arab masses through unprecedented reaction urge us to respond to them with utmost seriousness…. they are different from previous messages through reading their titles which say to us: Walk with us, don't appease us… the content of these messages say that the destiny of Gaza doesn't only belong to its people but rather our destiny as a whole, and its battle is the battle of each Arab citizen.
The summit is designed to stand by Gaza, not to search for settlements at its expense
His Excellency indicated that "the content of our summit today is based on this: To stand by Gaza, not to search for settlements at its expense to satisfy Israel or those who stand by it….The people of Gaza and its resistance men are those who outline the criteria that distinguish between the first and the second…they are the decision-makers, and our role is to stand by them without any hesitation in everything that supports their steadfastness, alleviates their sufferings and leads to the solution that guarantees their security and dignity.
President al-Assad said that "if the basis for what we are going to decide today is based on our standing by our people in Gaza in the face of the new Nazi Israeli holocaust, in addition to our conviction of the just Palestinian issue and the Palestinian legitimate rights, the this will not be completed without our understanding of the essence of the problem….the problem doesn't only lie in the occupation in itself, but in the nature and form of the enemy we confront based on decades of different experiences with it, which ranged from wars to failed peace attempts. This enemy which built its existence on massacres, and consolidated its survival on destruction and usurpation, and outlined its future on adopting the collective extermination, is an enemy that only speaks the language of blood.
Subsequently, this enemy only understands the language of blood and the Arab blood which was spilled since the foundation of Israel….this language and blood were for its advocators the necessary fuel for their machine in the stages of the foundation of the pure Jewish state which cannot be reached without forcible deportation of the non-Jews out of Palestine or the extermination of those who remained in it…
Therefore, what is happening in Gaza is not a mere reaction to rockets…if these rockets didn't exist, then they would have made them exist and fired them to find the justification… it's part of a long series that aims at reaching the Palestine they imagined or claim: a land without people… while the displaced Palestinians are driven to be settled by other countries or finding an alternative home… so if we are not going to read the reasons well, only incomplete and temporary or quick-to-collapse solutions can be produced…
President al-Assad added that "subsequently, the peace process for us was mere attempts that didn't develop to become a real peace process because the Israelis are suffering from a real phobia towards peace, and because crime makers cannot be excellent in peace making… in addition, it's a rule that a thief would not return what they stole voluntarily… namely, they don't return the rights unless they are forced top do so…. this is the essence of the resistance which the resistance men understood well… their resistance became the road to the peace which is established through the return of the rights which we restore from an enemy that only understands the language of force.
Peace without resistance with a heinous enemy will inevitably lead to surrender
President al-Assad went on to say that "here lies the difference between resistance and terrorism….the first are the Arabs and the second are the Israelis…the first were forced to fight in defense of their rights while the second is based on murder and aggression against the others… here definitely comes the clear answer to the questions of how can peace seekers bring about the peace while supporting the resistance… Syria definitely is meant by these questions…. we will not only answer by saying that the resistance has become a main element of the peace… but we answer in an opposite question: How can a man who wants to establish peace abandon the resistance and not support it… here lies the difference between peace and surrender… peace without resistance with a heinous and criminal enemy will inevitably lead to surrender.
The President added that "this quick image of some elements that characterize the Arab-Israeli conflict outlines the trends of the possible solutions to the greater issue, outcomes and spin-offs. What is happening in Gaza today is one of its offshoots and results… dealing with the result necessitates dealing with the cause to guarantee the success…
Everybody knows that Israel wanted to turn its aggression on Gaza into a separation point in the history of its conflict with the Arabs… through its attempts to break the will of the Palestinians, Israel sought to create a new reality and a new history to chronicle the event with pre-Gaza and post-Gaza.... it sought to bring about an achievement that changes the new resistance-founded equations of the conflict with the Arabs and the Palestinians, especially after the victory of the national resistance in Lebanon, and after the resistance in Palestine got stronger… and also after the culture of resistance started to grow in the mind of the Arabs.
President al-Assad said that "it seems clear and obvious that Israel didn't learn from the lessons of history… this is a principle that is taken for granted: Whoever doesn’t have land doesn't have history…Whoever doesn't have history doesn't have memory… Israel built many of its plots and schemes on the basis that time, Zionist media, and its supporters as well as the repeated disappointments, will make the next Arab generations change their points of view towards Israel, and subsequently surrender to its aims and accept its policies, namely abandoning their land, dignity and sovereignty and becoming salves who work for its interests and desires voluntarily.
But did things go that way? In fact through a quick look into the course of events since the usurpation of Palestine we notice gradual renaissance and growing awareness among the Arabs towards their issues and stronger determination among the young generation not to repeat the mistakes committed by some ancestors.
We will never make concessions or surrender
No concession, giving away or surrender: the peace of the strong isn't given to the weak, the peace of the brave isn't granted to the cowards… this means that time failed those who bet on it, as did their huge military machines in Lebanon, and as they are doing to in Gaza, apart from the size of destruction or the murders committed… this in not heroism… what we mean is the will which diminished the idea of Israeli expansionism, beginning from Lebanon and then in Gaza, and later will be in the Bank and the Golan…it's the will which reversed the idea of immigration among the Palestinians into sticking to the land.
His Excellency said that "subsequently, no option is left for the Israelis except submitting to peace and its requirements…this peace cannot be brought about as long as the symbol of pride in Israel is represented by whose hands are more stained with the blood of Arabs. This big peace starts today in Gaza, which is little in terms of area but big and great in terms of resistance… this peace starts with stopping the aggression which lays the basis for ceasefire, withdrawal of the Israeli invading forces, lifting the unjust siege which is considered as a non-military war that leads to slow death for the Palestinians… whoever is subject to death cannot be blamed for anything.
Despite all of that, the resistance was committed to the truce while Israel continued to commit assassinations in public, leading to the martyrdom of nearly forty Palestinians over the past few months prior to the aggression….subsequently the allegations circulated by Israel and its supporters on the responsibility of the Palestinian party for what is going on are clear-cut lies which the Israelis exercised and did extremely well.
The closure of Israeli embassies, severing ties with Israel and activating the Arab boycott of Israel
President al-Assad added: "At present, there are a number of initiatives proposed by more than one state, which have not yet been completed because of the refusal of Israel to cease fire.
He added that "the stated justification is stopping the smuggling of arms, and in my opinion, everybody knows quite well that the prevention of arms smuggling or the prevention of smuggling in general is one of the functions of states. Is there a Palestinian state in existence? Does Israel recognize it….and what are its borders? From our side as Arab countries in parallel with initiatives and in addition to verbal support, we must undertake a number of practical steps, on top of which is the closure of the Israeli embassies immediately, severing any direct or indirect ties with Israel, in addition to the activation of the provisions of the Arab boycott of Israel." "In this context, Syria has decided and announced immediately after the start of the aggression to stop the indirect peace negotiations indefinitely after consultations with Turkey. The Arab Peace Initiative is as good as dead
His Excellency stressed that "regarding the Arab Peace Initiative, we consider it as already dead, because the conditions of approval and subsequent events have indicated that as we pressed to provide evidence of our serious desire in peace and presented further concessions, Israel went too far in its arrogance and disregard for our legitimate rights." "The Arab Peace Initiative is based primarily on peace, and peace hasn't been achieved, therefore, it is in fact non-existent… In fact, Sharon had killed it on the first day after we announced this initiative at the Arab Summit in Beirut in 2002; the very next day Sharon invaded Jenin and killed hundreds of Palestinians, and this response was the direct reaction and the death notice of the Initiative by the Israeli side, but we insisted that it was still alive and kept sending delegations after every Arab summit... We always were faced by further humiliation to our Initiative, so if we demand to withdraw it was already withdrawn by Israel... If we call for its death it was already killed by Israel... What remains for us as Arabs to do is to transfer the registry of this Initiative from the registry of the living to that of the dead."
"On the other hand, we must stand by the people of Gaza and the resistance officially, publicly, materially and by all means without exception, and to do everything possible to support their steadfastness in the face of the aggression, particularly by opening the crossing points for individuals, relief and assistance immediately… we also support the idea of a fund for the rebuilding of Gaza, with the call for an international conference to this end," President al-Assad said.
Lifting the siege imposed on Gaza Strip is key to the continuation of steadfastness
His Excellency added that "we must also take legal procedures to hold Israel accountable despite the lack of our confidence in the justice of the international bodies concerned, but this is for history to register that they are not only racists, but they are the most dangerous form of Nazism in the modern era, but let's be frank… these steps will remain weak in comparison with what we have to do… Gaza is not only injured by war but also by the siege, and lifting this siege is the key for the continuation of steadfastness, the key for the protection of children from death, and the key to the success of these proposals by their maximum and not the minimum limits. "Syria stood with the resistance in Lebanon and proved victorious, thanks to the resistance fighters first and foremost…we don't claim this victory for ourselves, but the stand of the brother by his brother is effective to a large extent, as he provides him with the means for power and strength… however, keeping the blockade is like someone who prevents the air, food and medicine from the injured and prevents others from providing assistance to them… it is an unjust siege that will not be forgiven by God and will not be forgiven by peoples.
President al-Assad said "we are a nation of peace, and our national, Arab and humane ethics are based on peace, and because we are so we tried to forget that there were the massacres of Deir Yassin, Kafr Qasim, Jenin, Qana I and Qana II and many other Israeli massacres against the Arabs, but Israel insists on reminding us of its truth... Since we are the owners of a rich memory, since we are the people of history and owners of the land, we promise them that we will keep remembering and most importantly, we will make sure that our children remember as well… we will keep for them the photos of Gaza children with their open wounds and their blood flowing over their toys…we will tell them about the martyrs, the bereaved, the widows and the disabled, and we will teach them that the strong believer is better and more beloved to God than the weak believer… An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth, and the instigator is the unjust… what was taken by force can only be restored by force."
"We will explain to them that whoever loses the memory of the past will lose the future, and we will hang on the walls of their rooms a slogan for every Arab child coming to this life that says 'do not forget' so that the child grows up and says to them I will not forget and I will not forgive."
President al-Assad added "I assure them that what they are doing and the war crimes they are committing will only bring them new Arab generations that are more hostile to Israel…the immunity of these new generation will further develop, and their will shall harden stronger and faster in a manner deadlier than the development and strength of the Israeli military arsenal… this means in the equation of reality that for every Arab child killed, dozens of resistance fighters are born, and this also means that they are digging graves with their own hands for their children and grandchildren."
"Today they have the option to sow what they want for the future, good or bad... but afterwards they would not have the option to determine the type of harvest... They have sown blood and will reap only blood, and when the plant ripens it will be much greater than the seed that yielded it." "I greet and thank my brother, His Highness Prince Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, Emir of the State of Qatar, for his efforts for holding the Summit... I thank all the presidents and Arab and Muslims officials who contributed to the summit.
Ghossoun / Ahmad Fathi ZAHRA / Mazen / H. Sabbagh
