Hanan Ashrawi defended terrorists who murdered two unarmed Israelis in Ramallah in October 2000 and supported the Second Intifada, which consisted of deadly suicide bombings and other forms of terror attacks.
By World Israel News and AP
Hanan Ashrawi, a veteran senior official in the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) and supporter of terror attacks on Israelis, announced her resignation on Wednesday, saying the Palestinian political system needs “renewal and reinvigoration.”
Ashrawi, a member of the PLO’s decision-making executive committee, said she had informed President Mahmoud Abbas last month of her intention to leave at the end of the year. But after word of her resignation leaked out, she said Wednesday was stepping down immediately.
Abbas’ office said it had accepted her resignation.
The organization from which Ashrawi stepped down consists of groups that promote terror though are not on the U.S. list, such as Fatah, and groups that openly commit heinous terrorist crimes and are on the U.S. list, such as the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), a brutal Marxist faction.
Members of the PFLP, for instance, pioneered airplane hijackings and in 2014 murdered seven Israeli civilians during morning services in a Jerusalem synagogue, attacking worshipers with axes, knives, and a gun.
Ashrawi defended terrorists who murdered two unarmed Israelis in Ramallah in October 2000. She also justified the Second Intifada, which consisted of suicide bombings and other forms of terror attacks, as “the only language [that former Israeli Prime Minister Ariel] Sharon understands.”
She also referred to all Israelis who live beyond the 1949 armistice line as “legitimate and select target[s] of Palestinian resistance.”
Despite her open support of terror, Ashrawi has held several senior posts and participated in numerous rounds of peace negotiations. She is one of few women or Christians to hold a senior post in the Palestinian leadership.
In recent years, Ashrawi had become a vocal critic of the 85-year-old Abbas’ autocratic rule and reliance on a small inner circle of men in their 70s and 80s.
In a statement, Ashrawi, 74, said it was time for reforms in the PLO and to end the “marginalization and exclusion” of the executive committee from decision-making. She also called for a more diverse leadership.
“The Palestinian political system needs renewal and reinvigoration with the inclusion of youth, women, and additional qualified professionals,” she said.
She said she would continue to serve the Palestinian people “in every capacity, albeit outside public office.”