The World Peace Council (WPC) denounces vehemently the brutal escalation of violence of the Israeli army against the Palestinian people in East Jerusalem and the West Bank, which have caused the death of several Palestinians the last days. While we do not agree with blind actions of revenge from any side, we cannot close our eyes in front of the root cause for the recent tensions in the Palestinian territories, which is the ongoing occupation of the Palestinian lands by Israel and its army.
The Israeli regime provoked the sentiments of the Palestinian by announcing new and severe restrictions for the Palestinians for the holy places in Jerusalem which caused massive protests the previous days. The occupation regime tries to dilute the basis of the conflict towards a religious one, in order to cover the real facts on the ground since decades. The suffering of millions of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, the West Bank and East Jerusalem derives from the occupation of the Palestinian lands, the Israeli Settlements, the confiscation of land, the separation wall and the daily humiliation of children and families in Palestinian cities and villages by the occupation army.
The WPC denounces the government of the USA for its full support to the Israeli regime and likewise the hypocrisy of the European Union which pretends to care for the Palestinian people, while endorsing actually the actions of Israel.
We express our full-hearted solidarity with the Palestinian people in their struggle to end the occupation and for the establishment of an independent, viable State within the borders of pre 4th June 1967, with East Jerusalem as its capital. We demand the release of the thousands of Palestinian political prisoners from Israeli jails and the right for the return for the refugees according to the UN Resolution 194.
The WPC salutes also the peace loving forces inside Israel who are struggling side by side with the Palestinian people for the end of the occupation and for the same aims.
We convey our strongest support and solidarity to the Palestinian Committee for Peace and Solidarity (PCPS) as our Secretariat member and call upon all WPC members and friends to organize protests against the aggression of the Israeli regime and solidarity actions with the just cause of the Palestinian people.

Athens 25th July 2017 The WPC Secretariat