The expanded Secretariat Meeting of the World Peace Council was held in Belgrade, Serbia on the 21st of March, 2024. The event also marked the 25th anniversary of the bombing of Belgrade by NATO forces. Below you can find the communique of the meeting.
Communiqué of the Meeting of the Secretariat—Belgrade, Serbia, 21st March 2024
The Portuguese Council for Peace and Cooperation (CPPC) strongly condemns the massacre by the Israeli occupation forces that resulted in more than 100 dead and 700 injured Palestinians when trying to access food aid in the city of Gaza.
This cruel crime was committed in a situation in which Israel has been imposing, for five months now, an inhumane blockade on the Palestinian population in the Gaza Strip, making it impossible to access water, food, medicines, electricity and fuel, among other essential goods.
The Portuguese Council for Peace and Cooperation (CPPC) salutes the Sahrawi people, as well as the Polisario Front, their legitimate representative, on the occasion of the 48th. anniversary of the proclamation of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR), which took place on February 27, 1976, reaffirming support for the Sahrawi people's struggle to fulfil their right to self-determination.
The Portuguese Council for Peace and Cooperation (CPPC) strongly repudiates the new veto of the United States of America on the proposed resolution presented by Algeria at the Security Council of the United Nations, on February 20, which called for an immediate ceasefire in the Gaza Strip.
In view of the announcement that a large-scale attack by Israeli forces is forthcoming on the Rafah region, where Israeli bombings have already caused the deaths of dozens of Palestinians who sought refuge here, flocking from other areas of the Gaza Strip, the Portuguese Council for Peace and Cooperation (CPPC) reaffirms the demand repeated for more than four months: the urgency of an immediate and permanent ceasefire and the urgent delivery of humanitarian aid to the Palestinian population.
The Portuguese Council for Peace and Cooperation (CPPC) salutes the 25th. anniversary of the Bolivarian Revolution, which began with the inauguration of President Hugo Chávez in 1999, opening a path of hope and of economic, social, cultural and political transformation at the service of the Venezuelan people, which was enshrined in the Constitution of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela.
The Portuguese Council for Peace and Cooperation (CPPC) repudiates the recent and continuous bombings by the US and the United Kingdom against Yemen, which not only worsen the conditions of the already martyred Yemeni people, but also represent a new and dangerous step in the escalation of war in the Middle East.
The Portuguese Council for Peace and Cooperation (CPPC) signed the letter that calls on States around the world to support South Africa's lawsuit that accuses Israel of violating the Genocide Convention, at the International Court of Justice.
The letter calls on States to present statements of support for the lawsuit initiated by South Africa – which can be done at any time – with the aim of denouncing, holding accountable and preventing Israel from continuing to commit crimes against the Palestinian people, including that of genocide as defined by the Genocide Convention.
Since Israel's aggression against the Palestinian population in the Gaza Strip and until January 26, 44 actions for peace in the Middle East and in solidarity with the Palestinian people took place in Portugal, promoted by the Portuguese Council for Peace and Cooperation (CPPC), by the General Confederation of Portuguese Workers – Intersindical Nacional (CGTP-IN), by the Movement for the Rights of the Palestinian People and for Peace in the Middle East (MPPM) and by the Noise Project – Youth Association, and joined by many other organisations.
We also call upon the Global North states to reinstate their
aid to the UN Palestine Agency (UNRWA)
On January 26, 2024, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) released an order that found “plausible” evidence of genocide in Israel’s bombardment of the Palestinians of Gaza (paragraph 54). The ICJ, also known as the World Court, called upon Israel to “take all measures within its power to prevent the commission of all acts” that are genocidal (paragraph 78).
