The Palestinian Assembly for Liberation (PAL), and the below undersigned, along with the organizations and communities we represent, strongly condemn the Palestinian Authority’s brutal repression of protesters in the West Bank - including its arrests, detainment, and assault of peaceful community leaders.

For decades, and especially since the victory of Palestinian freedom fighters in the “Sword of Jerusalem” battle, the Palestinian Authority has escalated its brutal repression of Palestinian activists, and are complicit in the murder of Nizar Banat and the equally vicious attack on the international hero Maher El Akhras, which led to his hospitalization on August 21, 2021.

Since its inception, and by way of US funding and CIA training and supervision, the Palestinian Security Services (PSS) have served as informants and coordinators for Israeli colonizing forces.

On July 5th, and again on August 21, 2021 the PSS furthered the Israeli objective of repressing Palestinians by brutalizing Palestinians for protesting corruption, false arrests and the murder and abuse of Palestinian activists by the PSS, and by Israel. Just like the Israeli colonizing forces, the PSS and PA are trying to manufacture evidence to sustain unlawful charges for internationally protected free assembly and free speech against Palestinian activists including US citizen Ubai Aboudi and Astrophysicist Imad Barghouti, who were recently released from Israeli dungeons. 

PAL condemns the PA and the PSS for their role in subjugating Palestinians and Palestinian interests to the interests of the Israeli colonizers and their imperialist allies. PAL considers it a global duty of all people of conscience to boycott the counter-liberatory PA.  PAL further calls upon Palestinians to fortify our unity so that we, and our struggle, are no longer diverted by seemingly “internal” conflicts and can strengthen our efforts toward a national, popular and revolutionary struggle for the liberation of colonized Palestine. 

Therefore, we call upon all supporters of Palestine, be they governments, organizations, or individuals, to boycott the PA until the following demands are met:

(1) The immediate release of all political prisoners from Palestinian prisons and the waiver of all charges against them and all Palestinian political activists;

(2) The immediate halt in attacks against the Palestinian population and restructuring of the PSS to serve and defend the Palestinian national interests and people, primarily against all forms and manifestations of Israeli violence and colonization;

(3) The escalation of efforts by the PA to secure the release of all Palestinians and liberation activists held in Israeli prisons;

(4) The restoration of the Palestinian National Council charter of 1968.

(5) Rebuilding and revitalizing the Palestinian representative institutions and their mandate as per the principles of Palestinian National Charter.

(6) The immediate formation of an independent fact-finding committee, independent of any PA bodies, to investigate the assaults of all Palestinians and the assassination of Nizar Banat and corruption within the PA, and to undertake the following;

a.  Investigate the brutality waged by the PSS against Palestinian activists and ensure that all who partook are sanctioned and removed from their posts and prosecuted accordingly;

b. The arrest of all those who participated in the planning or the assassination of Nizar Banat, and the prosecution of all parties directly and indirectly involved with his murder by that committee;

c.  To ensure no Palestinian is repressed, attacked or threatened or in any way charged or harmed for their activism against PA corruption or for their work for Palestinian liberation from Israeli colonization.

(7) The formation of a committee to forthwith arrange for inclusive PNC, legislative and presidential elections within a prompt and clear timeframe.

a.  Until such elections are had, there must be formed an interim transitional national unity government.

b.  Both bodies, interim and standing, shall be primarily tasked with ensuring Palestinian needs are met with integrity, and that all elected agencies and officials are in sole service of the Palestinian people, and most primarily in service of the Palestinian struggle for liberation and return; 

We honor Nizar Banat's steadfastness in resisting colonization as well as internal corruption by reaffirming our commitment to the principles for which he lived and died. We send our deepest condolences to his family, wife and children, and the entire Palestinian people.

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P.A.L. 08/23/21