Abbas delivers impassioned plea for Palestinian statehood at UN
The Palestinian president has made an impassioned plea for full membership of United Nations, saying it is a "moment of truth" for his people.
Mahmoud Abbas drew sustained applause from members of the General Assembly as he rose to speak minutes after submitting a formal application to UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.
He told said Jewish settlements in the West bank were blocking the movement to peace - and said Palestinian people would continue their "peaceful, popular resistance" as they aim to gain recognition of their rights.
Abbas warned that the Palestinian authority could collapse if Israel continues building settlements on lands claimed by the Palestinians.
He criticised Israel's policy of what he called "ethnic cleansing", which he said had pushed Palestinians away from their ancestral home with continued raids, arrests and killings.
He said: "The time has come for our men, women and children to live normal lives; for them to be able to sleep without waiting for the worst that the next day will bring; for mothers to be assured that their children will return home without fear of being killed arrested or humiliated."
Abbas referred to the death of a Palestinian man after he was shot in a clash with Israeli soldiers and settlers in the West Bank.
The man was shot when some 200 settlers reportedly burned and uprooted trees near the village of Qusra.
There have been rallies in several towns to show support for Palestine's push for statehood.
Villagers in Qusra reportedly threw stones at the settlers before Israeli troops arrived, fired tear gas and then live rounds as settlers also fired their weapons.
Abbas is claiming statehood for areas of Israel captured in the 1967 Middle East War, including West Bank, Gaza and east Jerusalem.
The issue has divided the international community, with Israel and the US strongly opposed and France trying to seek a compromise.
Malta’s foreign minister Tonio Borg has already said that should consensus exist, Malta would back France proposal forwarded by President Nicolas Sarkozy to have Palestine accepted as an observer to the UN and a one year time-frame for an agreement towards member status within the UN.
