Abbas calls on UN to accept Palestine's membership

ISTANBUL

This is a natural demand of our people, Abbas said as he addressed the participants of the World Economic Forum (WEF) on Europe, the Middle East, North Africa and Central Asia in Istanbul on Tuesday.
I thank the Turkish Premier Recep Tayyip Erdogan for inviting me to Istanbul for the WEF meeting. Turkey is working hard for peace and stability in the region, Abbas indicated.
Palestine could not make economic progress due to problems related with Israel's occupation. However, there exist opportunities for investment in Palestine in the fields of tourism, real estate, agriculture, industry, communications, information technology, electricity production and distribution and water, Abbas noted.
Palestine is a tourism region for many people, including the three monotheistic religions. An investment of about 10 billion USD could boost tourism in Palestine, Abbas stated.
What has been done in Palestine to date has been limited, we could have done more had it not been for the Israeli occupation, Abbas stressed.
I call on all of you here today to visit Palestine. When you do come, you can observe the incidents taking place in Palestine closely and explore opportunities for investments. Giving hand in hand, we can realize joint investments and partnerships. By economic strength, we will be able to help our people reach hopes that they have been waiting for patiently, Abbas said.
I also want you to visit the prisoners in Jerusalem. Such a visit can have no religious or political goal. More than 45 years have passed since the West Bank was occupied on June 5. Unfortunately, the two-state solution faces many problems. Israel's continuation of widening residential sites with no legitimacy is an obstacle. Israel wishes to separate Eastern Jerusalem from whole Arab region. By isolating Jerusalem and the people of Jerusalem, Israel forces the people in Jerusalem to leave the region and their homeland. I request from you all to visit Palestine. Israel is trying to change the historic and religious configuration there. Israel conducts various attacks in the West Bank and Eastern Jerusalem, Abbas underlined.