This is my homeland no one can kick me out.
Yasser Arafat
Whoever stands by a just cause cannot possibly be called a terrorist.
Yasser Arafat
We plan to eliminate the state of Israel and establish a purely Palestinian state. We will make life unbearable for Jews by psychological warfare and population explosion. We Palestinians will take over everything, including all of Jerusalem.
Yasser Arafat
Whoever thinks of stopping the uprising before it achieves its goals, I will give him ten bullets in the chest.
Yasser Arafat
I come bearing an olive branch in one hand, and the freedom fighter’s gun in the other. Do not let the olive branch fall from my hand.
Yasser Arafat
In order to obtain the goal of returning to Palestine, all of us sometimes have to grit our teeth.
Yasser Arafat
Our law is a Jordanian law that we inherited, which applies to both the West Bank and Gaza, and sets the death penalty for those who sell land to Israelis.
Yasser Arafat
Peace for us means the destruction of Israel. We are preparing for an all-out war, a war which will last for generations.
Yasser Arafat
The Palestinian Rifle is ready and we will aim it if they try to prevent us from praying in Jerusalem.
Yasser Arafat
The victory march will continue until the Palestinian flag flies in Jerusalem and in all of Palestine.
Yasser Arafat
It’s always convenient for certain people to heap accusations on Israel.
Yasser Arafat
Palestine is the cement that holds the Arab world together, or it is the explosive that blows it apart.
Yasser Arafat
The Palestinians, whose national cause guards the gates of Arab-Israeli peace, look forward like their Arab brethren to that comprehensive, just, and lasting peace based on ‘land for peace’ and compliance with international legitimacy and resolutions.
Yasser Arafat
Peace, for us, is an asset and in our interest. It is an absolute human asset that allows an individual to freely develop his individuality unbound by any regional, religious, or ethnic fetters.
Yasser Arafat
The Arabs are looking forward to developing their region, which the long years of war had prevented from finding its true place in today’s world, in an atmosphere of democracy, pluralism, and prosperity.
Yasser Arafat
We started the peace process on the basis of land for peace and on the basis of U.N. resolution 242 and 338,1 as well as other international decisions on achieving the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people.
Yasser Arafat
I call on all the countries of the world, especially the donor countries, to speed up their contributions so that the Palestinian people may overcome their economic and social problems and proceed with reconstruction and the rebuilding of infrastructures.
Yasser Arafat
I call on Russia and the United States of America, the cosponsors of the peace conference, to help the peace process take bigger steps by contributing to the process and helping to overcome all obstacles.
Yasser Arafat
Confidence alone does not make peace, but acknowledging rights and confidence do. Failure to recognize these rights creates a sense of injustice; it keeps the embers burning under the ashes.
Yasser Arafat
As long as we have decided to coexist in peace, we must do so on a firm basis that will withstand time and for generations.
Yasser Arafat
I would like to congratulate my partners in peace – Mr. Yitzhak Rabin, the Prime Minister of Israel, and Mr. Shimon Peres, the Israeli Foreign Minister – on being awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.
Yasser Arafat
I assure you, Ladies and Gentlemen, that we shall discover ourselves in peace more than we have with war and confrontation, as I am sure that the Israelis, in turn shall find themselves in peace more than they have found it in war.
Yasser Arafat
How can I shave in the midst of guerrilla warfare? On battlefields, we have no facilities for shaving, and that was why I first grew my beard.
Yasser Arafat
Though I am not a chief of state, I must work twice as hard as one because I have to both administer a bureaucracy and run a revolution.
Yasser Arafat
We totally and absolutely renounce all forms of terrorism.
Yasser Arafat
Name: Yasser Arafat (born Mohammed Abdel Rahman Abdel Raouf Arafat al-Qudwa al-Husseini)
Born: August 24, 1929, in Cairo, Egypt
Died: November 11, 2004, in Clamart, France
Yasser Arafat was a Palestinian nationalist leader and a central figure in the Palestinian struggle for self-determination and statehood. He is best known for his leadership of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) and his role in advocating for Palestinian rights on the international stage.
Early Life and Education: Arafat was born to a Palestinian father and Egyptian mother in Cairo. He spent his early years in Egypt and later moved to Jerusalem, where he attended the University of King Fuad I (now Cairo University) to study engineering. During his university years, Arafat became involved in Palestinian nationalist activities, forming connections with other Palestinian students who shared his vision of an independent Palestinian state.
Formation of the PLO: In 1956, Arafat and his associates founded Fatah, a Palestinian nationalist movement aimed at liberating Palestine from Israeli occupation. Fatah became the dominant faction within the PLO, an umbrella organization formed in 1964 to represent the interests of the Palestinian people and to pursue their right to self-determination.
Role in the Arab-Israeli Conflict: Arafat gained international prominence during the Arab-Israeli Six-Day War in 1967. Fatah’s armed wing, the Palestinian Liberation Army, engaged in guerrilla warfare against Israeli forces. The war resulted in the Israeli occupation of the West Bank, Gaza Strip, and East Jerusalem. Arafat’s leadership within the PLO continued to evolve as he advocated for armed resistance and political negotiation as means to achieve Palestinian rights.
1970s and 1980s: Arafat’s leadership saw shifts from military actions to diplomatic efforts, notably with his speech at the United Nations General Assembly in 1974. In his address, he famously wore a traditional Palestinian keffiyeh and carried an olive branch, signaling a willingness to engage in peaceful negotiations. The PLO gained observer status at the UN, and Arafat’s reputation as a statesman began to develop.
However, the 1970s and 1980s also saw periods of violence and conflict, including the 1982 Israeli invasion of Lebanon, during which Palestinian refugee camps were targeted.
Oslo Accords and Later Years: In the 1990s, Arafat engaged in negotiations with Israel that led to the Oslo Accords (1993 and 1995), which aimed to establish a framework for Palestinian self-governance in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. Arafat returned from exile and became the President of the Palestinian Authority in 1994.
Despite the positive developments, tensions persisted, and peace efforts faltered. Arafat’s leadership faced criticism from various quarters, with accusations of corruption and his inability to secure a lasting resolution to the conflict.
Death and Legacy: Yasser Arafat died in 2004 in a hospital near Paris. The exact cause of his death remains a subject of speculation, as no definitive conclusion was reached.
Arafat’s legacy is complex and divisive. He is revered by many Palestinians as a symbol of their struggle for statehood and recognition. He is also recognized internationally for his role in raising awareness about the Palestinian cause. However, he is also criticized for his leadership style, his perceived reluctance to make critical concessions for peace, and the continued conflict between Israel and the Palestinians.
His legacy continues to shape discussions about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and the broader Middle East region.
