January 21, 2013

(JTA) — The representative of the Palestinian Authority to Britain reportedly said that “there is no two-state solution” to the conflict with Israel.

The statement by Manuel Hassassian came on Jan. 15 during a speech which he delivered in the British Parliament, according to a report by the British news website The Commentator. 

“There is no two-state solution,” Hassassian is quoted as saying. “Democracies don’t fight each other. If Israel is a democracy I would claim that the Palestinians are also a democracy. If democracies cannot fight each other then why not have one state? One man, one vote.”

Hassassian spoke in Britain’s Parliament as a guest of lawmaker Jeremy Corbyn, a harsh critic of Israel, in front of some100 people attending an event organized by the Palestine Solidarity Campaign. 

Hassassian is reported to have also remarked: “Because nobody is stopping Israel from building its messianic dream of Eretz Israel … I believe that maybe God is on their side. Maybe God is partial on this issue.”

In addition, Hassassian is said to have questioned Israel’s future by remarking upon the growing Muslim population in the world.

“The United States is not going to be Israel’s strategic ally for time immemorial. And today we have 1.5 billion Muslims. In 20 years we will have 2 billion. And those 2 billion, forget about politics, from a religious perspective will not allow Israel to continue desecrating their religious rights,” he said.

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