The 56th anniversary of the founding of the Palestine Liberation Organization
Since the Zionist occupation of Palestine in 1948, the Palestinians were in need of an organization that represents them and manages their affairs in the face of such occupation that threatens their national sovereignty. Therefore, the Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs submitted a recommendation to the Council of the League of Arab States, in March 1959, suggesting to strive to raise the Palestinian profile. President Gamal Abdel Nasser called for the convening of the Arab Summit Conference in Cairo (from 13 to 16 January 1964) in order to issue a decision to establish the Palestine Liberation Organization. The Organization was established on May 28, 1964 when the first Palestinian National Conference was convened in Jerusalem.
The Organization was recognized by the United Nations General Assembly as the sole legitimate representative of the Palestinian people and was granted observer status at the United Nations. In accordance with General Assembly resolution No. 3236 of 1974, Palestine’s status in the UN was changed from the Palestine Liberation Organization to “Palestine” later in 1988 in recognition of the Palestinian Declaration of Independence.
The prominent Palestinian politician Ahmed al-Shukeiri was the initiator for establishing an independent Palestinian entity. He called for preliminary meetings in countries that include Palestinian communities to choose representatives to establish the organization. After the Conference has approved the" Palestinian National Charter "and the Palestine Liberation Organization Statute, Ahmed al-Shukeiri was elected Chairman of the PLO. In 1951, al-Shukeiri became assistant Secretary General for the Arab League and was charged of Palestinian affairs, and he represented Palestine at Arab summits and international conferences.
Gamal Abdel Nasser’s support to the Palestine Liberation Organization
“If it weren’t for the United Arab Republic, if it weren’t for President Abdel Nasser in particular, the Palestine Liberation Organization wouldn’t have been established” said Ahmed al-Shukeiri about Gamal Abdel Nasser's support to the PLO, as President Abdel Nasser expressed Egypt's willingness to provide all facilities to support the Organization. Abdel Nasser has contributed to the establishment of the Palestinian Liberation Army in the Gaza Strip, and the allocation of radio frequencies from Cairo that enabled al-Shukeiri to address the Arabs and Palestinians, which helped the Organization to continue to build its entity. President Nasser also issued a republican decree in the beginning of 1965 to dissolve the Palestinian Arab National Union in the Gaza Strip, and handed over its duties to the PLO, to become the National Organization for the Palestinians in the Strip.
