Mahmoud Abbas’ Fatah-controlled Palestinian Authority (PA) has published a picture of the official logo chosen by Fatah, the party co-founded by arch-terrorist Yasser Arafat and Mahmoud Abbas, for celebrations marking the movement’s 48th anniversary. The logo features various symbols, including a map of what should be Israel labelled only as ‘Palestine,’ the number 48, the Palestinian flag, and the slogan for the 48th anniversary, ‘The state and the victory.’ The ZOA is strongly urging President Barack Obama, the European Union and the United Nations to condemn this outrage which reiterates the clear fact that Abbas and the Fatah/PA have no interest in peace with Israel, only its destruction.

The new Fatah logo is consistent with official PA maps used in official documents, government offices and schools that do not acknowledge Israel’s existence and mark all of Israel as ‘Palestine.’ Other symbols central to Fatah ideology also appear in the logo, including a rifle and a key symbolizing the Palestinian claim of ownership to houses within Israel (‘New Fatah logo erases Israel,’ PMW bulletin, December 12, 2012).

ZOA National President Morton A. Klein said, “This new Fatah logo graphically depicts the ugly truth about this unreconstructed terrorist organization whose Constitution to this day calls for the destruction of Israel (Article 13) and the use of terrorism as an essential element in the struggle to achieve this aim (Article 19). As with the quotes reproduced below (and to which dozens more could be added), it belies the fiction that Mahmoud Abbas is a ‘moderate’ who seeks peace with Israel, and who wishes to end Palestinian terrorism against Israeli Jews. It also makes clear that the principles of Yasser Arafat are respected and promoted. 

“The new Fatah logo is not an aberration. The Palestinian Authority continues to promote the incitement of hatred in Palestinian mosques, schools and media.

“The ZOA renews it call upon the Obama Administration to stop wasting hundreds of millions of dollars on the unreformed terrorist entity that is Fatah, to stop making excuses for Abbas, and to stop pressuring Israel to make dangerous concessions on the altar of appeasement.

“President Obama, the European Union and the United Nations must demand that Mahmoud Abbas immediately and publicly halt the distribution of this hateful poster and apologize for its release. If he refuses, it is time to conclude, once and for all, that Abbas is no more moderate than Yasser Arafat, his predecessor and former partner.”

Statements by Mahmoud Abbas and other senior Fatah figures rejecting Israel as Jewish state, opposing its existence and supporting terrorism:

• Mahmoud Abbas, PA president and Fatah chairman: “I say this clearly: I do not accept the Jewish State, call it what you will.” (‘Mahmoud Abbas: “I do not accept the Jewish State, call it what you will,” Palestinian Media Watch bulletin, April 28, 2009).

• ‘If you want war, and if all of you will fight Israel, we are in favor’” (‘Mahmoud Abbas: “If all of you [Arab States] will fight Israel, we are in favor,” Palestinian Media Watch bulletin, July 7, 2010).

• Abbas:  “I had the honor of firing the first shot in 1965 and of being the one who taught resistance to many in the region and around the world; what it’s like; when it is effective and when it isn’t effective; its uses, and what serious, authentic and influential resistance is … We [Fatah] had the honor of leading the resistance and we taught resistance to everyone, including Hizbullah, who trained in our military camps” (‘Abbas: Armed ‘resistance’ not ruled out,’ Jerusalem Post, February 28, 2008).

• Abbas: “The Palestinians do not accept the formula that the state of Israel is a Jewish state.” (David Bedein, ‘Olmert reports to Israel Cabinet Meeting

,’ Bulletin [Philadelphia], December 3, 2007).

• Abbas: “It is not required of Hamas, or of Fatah, or of the Popular Front to recognize Israel” (Al-Arabiya [Dubai] and PA TV, October 3, 2006, translation in ‘Historic opportunity at Fatah Sixth General Conference,’ Palestinian Media Watch bulletin, July 28, 2009).

• Abbas: “[W]ith the will and determination of its sons, Fatah has and will continue. We will not give up our principles and we have said that rifles should be directed against the occupation…. We have a legitimate right to direct our guns against Israeli occupation” (Khaled Abu Toameh, ‘Abbas: Aim guns against occupation,’ Jerusalem Post, January 11, 2007). 

• Kifah Radaydeh, senior Fatah official:  “Fatah is facing a challenge, because [Fatah] says that we perceive peace as one of the strategies, but we say that all forms of the struggle exist, and we do not rule out the possibility of the armed struggle or any other struggle. The struggle exists in all its forms, on the basis of what we are capable of at a given time, and according to what seems right”  [PA TV July 7, 2009, translation in ‘Fatah official: ‘Our goal has never been peace. Peace is a means; the goal is Palestine,’ Palestinian Media Watch Bulletin, July 12, 2009).  

• Rafik al-Natsheh, senior Fatah official: “We will maintain the resistance [i.e. terrorism] option in all its forms and we will not recognize Israel …Not only don’t we demand that anyone recognize Israel; we don’t recognize Israel ourselves. However, the Palestinian Authority government is required to do it, or else it will not be able to serve the Palestinian people. I am certain that we will hinder all the traitors who wish to remove the resistance option from the movement’s charter” (Ali Waked, ‘Senior Fatah official: We won’t recognize Israel. Fatah official: Movement to display commitment to armed struggle in upcoming convention,’ Yediot Ahronot, July 22, 2009).

• Muhammad Dahlan, former commander of Fatah forces in Gaza: “We do not demand that the Hamas movement recognize Israel. On the contrary, we demand of the Hamas movement not to recognize Israel, because the Fatah movement does not recognize Israel, even today” (‘Western funders misled: Fatah still refuses to recognize Israel, PA’s “recognition” only to receive international aid,’ Palestinian Media Watch, March 17, 2009).

Abu Ahmed, Fatah commander: ‘“The base of our Fatah movement keeps dreaming of Tel Aviv, Haifa, Jaffa and Acco. …There is no change in our official position. Fatah as a movement never recognized Israel” (David Bedein, ‘The American Sanitizing of a Terrorist Group,’ Israel National News, October 5, 2006).