Ｒｅｃｅｐｔｉｏｎ Ｍａｒｋｉｎｇ Ｉｎｔｅｒｎａｔｉｏｎａｌ Ｄａｙ ｏｆ Ｓｏｌｉｄａｒｉｔｙ ｗｉｔｈ ｔｈｅ Ｐａｌｅｓｔｉｎｉａｎ Ｐｅｏｐｌｅ Ｈｅｌｄ

The CPAFFC and the China-Arab Friendship Association (CAFA) jointly held a reception in Beijing on November 29， 2006， to commemorate the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People. Abdul’ahat Abdulxirit， vice chairman of the National Committee of the CPPCC， attended the reception. Chen Haosu， president of the CPAFFC， and Diab Nemer Mohammed Allouh， Palestinian ambassador to China， made speeches at the reception.

In his speech， President Chen Haosu pointed out that， the Middle East issue has remained unsolved for over half a century， bringing grave disasters to the people of all countries in the region. The Palestinian problem lies in the core of the Middle East issue， therefore the international community should make greater efforts to promote peaceful solution so as to end the conflicts between Palestine and Israel as soon as possible and ease the tension of the region， providing conditions for resuming the Middle East peace process. He emphasized， as a sincere friend of the Palestinian people， China will continue to support the just cause of the Palestinian people and play a constructive role in realizing peace in the Middle East.

Ambassador Allouh said， today we are celebrating the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People when the Palestinian people are commemorating the 2nd anniversary of the passing away of Yasser Arafat and the 18th anniversary of the announcement of the establishment of independent Palestinian State. We want to extend our heartfelt thanks to the Chinese president， the Chinese government， parties and people for your unswerving stand and consistent support for the Palestinian people in their pursuit of legitimate rights and interests and their just cause.

Present were Ma Wenpu， vice minister of the International Department of the CPC Central Committee， Zhai Jun， assistant foreign minister， Yang Fuchang， vice president of the CAFA， representatives from the Ministry of Commerce， the Ministry of Culture， the All-China Youth Federation， and the All-China Women’s Federation， Mhd Kheir Al-Wadi， chairman of the Arab Ambassadors’ Council and Syrian Ambassador to China， Arab countries’ Ambassadors to China， diplomats of Arab Embassies in China and Palestinian students in Beijing， totaling about 120 people.