The Association of Portuguese Municipalities announced its support of the rights of the Palestinian People to independence and their right to establish their own independent state over the borders of June 4, 1967. The announcement was made during the general assembly meeting of the Association of Portuguese Municipalities held in Seychelles, attended by the President of Portugal, the Prime Minister and all Portuguese Municipalities (307), as well as the President of the Association of Palestinian Local Authorities "APLA", Abdelkarim Al-Zubeidi, the Palestinian Ambassador, H.E. Dr. Nabil Abu Zneid, and the accompanying Palestinian Delegation.
The announcement is part of the ongoing efforts of APLA to convey the Palestinian Cause to international platforms. The announcement followed the visit of a delegation of Portuguese Municipalities to Palestine last May to review the reality of Palestinian municipalities.
APLA's President, Al-Zubeidi expressed his appreciation of the important role of the Palestinian Embassy in Portugal to enhance the relationships between Palestine and Portugal, expressing his appreciation of the role played by Portuguese municipalities in supporting the Palestinian people and strengthening bilateral relations. In addition, Al-Zubeidi emphasized the importance of strengthening partnership and international solidarity to achieve more support and mobilize more solidarity with the Palestinian Cause.
On another note, the Ambassador of Palestine to Portugal, Dr. Nabil Abu Zneid, expressed his appreciation of the Portuguese Association and the Portuguese municipalities for their supportive stance with the Palestinian people, praising the efforts exerted in enhancing cooperation and solidarity between Portugal and Palestine. Furthermore, H.E. clarified that this announcement is months apart from the recognition of the Portuguese Parliament of the Palestinian Nakbah "Catastrophe", hoping that Portugal will announce its recognition of the State of Palestine. H.E. Abu Zneid noted that the participation of the Palestinian Delegation as the only honorary guest to this conference, is a clear testament to the Portuguese support to the Palestinian People.
The announcement of the Association of Portuguese Municipalities included its continuous commitment to support the rights of the Palestinian People and the enhancement of relationships between the two countries, as well as enhancing the support of Palestinian municipalities and building partnerships between municipalities in Palestine and Portugal to enable them to provide better services to the Palestinian Citizens.