While the Palestinian Authority (PA) and Fatah pretend to the world that they would be content with a Palestinian state within the June 4, 1967, borders — living in peace, side by side with Israel — they have a different message when addressing the Arab/Palestinian public.

In talking to their own people, their goal echoes former Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat’s “stages plan,” which meant that Palestinians would conquer Israel bit by bit.

Still today, PA/Fatah leaders believe the way to destroy Israel is to agree to a Palestinian state on the 1967 borders as a first step, leaving Israel with indefensible borders. Then they plan to demand/conquer more Israeli land over time, until all of Israel has become “Palestine.”

Recently, a Fatah official said explicitly that the 1967 borders “are not the Palestinian demand and not the final right,”a different wording for the stages plan:

Fatah official and An-Najah National University political science lecturer Raed Debiy: “We once again remind that [UN] Resolutions 242 and 338 and the establishment of a Palestinian state in the June 4, 1967 borders are not the Palestinian demand and not the final right [of the Palestinians], but rather this is the logical and realistic thing that we have agreed to on the basis of the international community’s demand.” [emphasis added]

[Official PA TV, Oct. 9, 2024]

That Palestinian leaders envision the entire State of Israel as “Palestine” — and don’t recognize Israel’s right to exist in any borders — has been documented by Palestinian Media Watch for almost three decades.

The slogan “From the River to the Sea, Palestine will be Free,” which has become popular around the world, is the short and accurate expression of this ideology seeking the destruction of all of Israel. Another way of saying that all of Israel is illegitimate is to say that the “occupation” has lasted “76 years” — i.e., since the establishment of Israel in 1948.

A spokesman of Fatah stressed that Fatah doesn’t recognize Israel’s right to exist at all, stating that “the Palestinian struggle against the occupation” has been going on for “76 years”:

Released terrorist and Fatah Spokesman Abd Al-Fattah Doleh: “The history of the Palestinian struggle has lasted 100 years, together with the British occupation, and 76 years against this criminal occupation [i.e., Israel], but the Palestinian people is not surrendering.”

[Official PA TV, Oct. 10, 2024]

During the current Gaza war, the PA has begged Hamas to join the PLO, and one Fatah official stressed that recognizing Israel is not a condition to join at all, neither for Hamas, nor for Fatah:

Fatah Revolutionary Council member Jamal Nazzal: “Now they [Hamas] need to say that the one who can save us is the PLO. The one who can save us is the plan of Palestinian [PA] President [Abbas], the plan of the PLO. This is not a reduction in the value of Hamas … It is only required to say ‘Let’s leave the matter in the PLO’s hands. Let’s leave this matter in the hands of President Mahmoud Abbas. …

Official PA TV host: “Are we close to the moment when the Hamas Movement and Islamic Jihad Movement will join the PLO as the sole legitimate representative of our people? …

Jamal Nazzal: “We need to eliminate Israel’s excuses and say: ‘Now we are in the framework of the PLO’s plan.’ This does not constitute a call on Hamas to concede on its plan or recognize Israel. There is no prerogative or obligation on Hamas or Fatah to recognize Israel, we just have to honor the PLO’s commitment.” [emphasis added]

[Official PA TV, Topic of the Day, Feb. 25, 2024]

Fatah Revolutionary Council member and regular columnist for the official PA daily, Muwaffaq Matar, also stressed that Fatah never has recognized Israel:

Muhammad Nazzal — the deputy of one of the many heads of Hamas, the armed branch of the [Muslim Brotherhood] organization in Palestine — appeared in a TV interview … and said: “Hamas’ argument with the PLO and the PA is not political, but rather stems from Hamas’ refusal to recognize Israel”! He continued … and said that “the PLO and the Fatah Movement demand that Hamas recognize Israel’! But how could it be that Fatah would ask his organization Hamas to do what Fatah has not done at all?” [emphasis added]

[Official PA daily Al-Hayat Al-Jadida, Feb. 11, 2024]

As its ruling party Fatah, the PLO also still seeks Israel’s destruction after 76 years of “occupation”:

Head of PLO Department of Human Rights, Qassem Awad: “Under the leadership of the PLO, we stand firmly on the Palestinian principles, which our people have never given up on during more than 76 years of occupation, that is the length of time of the ongoing crime against the Palestinian people.” [emphasis added]

[Official PA TV, March 3, 2024]

Similarly, top PA official Jibril Rajoub described Hamas’ terror war against Israel as a “defense” against the “76-year-old occupation”:

Fatah Central Committee Secretary Jibril Rajoub: “What happened on Oct. 7 [2023] is part of a war of defense that the Palestinian people is waging against this occupation, in response to the Israeli crimes that are a continuation of the same crimes that are 76 years old today, which is the age of this occupation, against all of Palestine and the Palestinians.” [emphasis added]

[Fatah Central Committee Secretary Jibril Rajoub, Facebook page, Jan. 17, 2024]

That all of Israel is “Palestine” is also the message fed to young Palestinian athletes.

A national coach told his athletes that Israeli cities of Jerusalem, Haifa, Jaffa, and Acre are part of “the Palestinian entirety”:

Palestinian national youth team coach: “Today we are the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. Today we are Jerusalem, Haifa, Jaffa, and Acre (i.e., all Israeli cities). Today we are Hebron, Bethlehem, and Ramallah. Today we are Nablus, Tulkarem, and Qalqilya. Today we are proud Jenin… Today we are the diaspora and the Interior (i.e., Palestinian term for Israel). Today we are the Palestinian entirety.”

[Radio Mawtini (Fatah radio station), Facebook page, Sept. 23, 2024]

It is about time that the international community that continues to push Israel to accept the PA as rulers of Gaza, recognize that the PA’s rejectionism is alive and well, and that when it comes to final goals, the PA seeks the same as Hamas — the only difference is tactical.

The author is a senior analyst at Palestinian Media Watch, where a version of this article was originally published.

The post The Palestinian Authority’s Goal Is Still to Destroy Israel first appeared on Algemeiner.com.