Erekat said that Israel “will never be part” of such a national security matrix and that “Arab protection needs an Arab strategic plan” AMMAN: The secretary-general of the Palestine Liberation Organisation’s (PLO) executive committee, Saeb Erekat, on Sunday said that Palestinians would remain committed to the two-state solution even if 193 countries moved their embassies to Tel Aviv. He said that no other option could ensure peace and security — nor bring an end to the conflict. “There are 51 percent Muslims and Christian Palestinian Arabs living between the sea and the Jordan River. What will you do with this Palestinian population?” Addressing a virtual press conference attended by Arab and foreign journalists, he called on the Arab world to forge its own national security plans without relying on foreign powers. Criticizing what he described as a “peace for protection” policy, Erekat said that Arabs must find their own system for protecting each other. He said that Israel sought military superiority in the region. “The last war that took place between an Arab and a non-Arab country was the Iraq-Iran war, and Israel supported Iran,” he said. Erekat said that Israel “will never be part” of such a national security matrix and that “Arab protection needs an Arab strategic plan.” He said that the Palestinian leadership wanted security and prosperity for all Arab countries but it would not compromise on its principles. The chief Palestinian negotiator said that the continuing smear campaign against the Palestinian leadership was unfair. “We heard the same broken record when the late martyr Yasser Arafat was besieged by Sharon.” Erekat said that if the world’s top democrats were Palestinian and demanded an independent Palestinian state, some would still want the leadership to be changed. “If Mother Teresa were to be the president of Palestine, Thomas Jefferson the prime minister of Palestine, Voltaire the speaker of the Palestinian parliament, and they all demanded two states, Netanyahu and others would call for a new Palestinian leadership,” Saeb Erekat said. He said, however, that new elections would take place soon. The senior Palestinian official criticized US President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for their military doctrine, which he said was based on control. “Trump divides the world into strong countries and countries that need the protection of strong countries. This is the law of the jungle.”