Ramallah: The International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People is being observed today across the world.

The United Nations General Assembly has designated 29 November to be celebrated as International Day of Solidarity with Palestinian People.

In 1977, the General Assembly called for the annual observance of 29 November as the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People.

President Mahmoud Abbas has Wednesday issued a statement on the occasion of the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People, stressing that the dangerous escalation in the region is mainly caused by the absence and disregard for rights.

The President added that the Gaza Strip is under an existential threat and deliberate and systematic targeting of civilians.

He called for an end to the silent annexation, settlement and racial discrimination measures in the entire occupied Palestinian territory, noting that what is required is to provide urgent international protection for Palestinian people and achieve justice through accountability and responsibility.

The President stressed the necessity of taking strategic steps to address the strategic threat to the two-state solution.

He added that the PLO rejected the liquidation projects for the Palestinian issue and the fragmented solutions and maintained the independent national decision-making and absolute sovereignty of Palestinian people over their land.

In a statement issued on the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said Palestinians in Gaza are suffering a humanitarian catastrophe.

The UN Secretary-General pointed out that almost 1.7 million people have been forced from their home in Gaza Strip.

He called for unrestricted access to lifesaving aid, the release of all hostages, the protection of civilians, and an end to violations of international humanitarian law.

To observe the UN International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People the Palestine Solidarity Committee is holding a rally at the Sharah-i-Qaideen-Tariq Road intersection on Wednesday (today) at 3.30pm for which it requested all segments of society at a press conference on Monday at the Karachi Press Club to join.

Former Karachi administrator Fahim Zaman said the platform is apolitical and nonpartisan. The ideas is that leftist, rightist, centralists and religious people who feel for Palestine’s pain should gather at one place and be counted as Karachiites.