Left: Ms. Amina Mohammed, Deputy Secretary-General/ Middle: H.E. Mr. Fod¨¦ Seck, Chairman, Palestinian Rights Committee/ Right: Ms. Hanan Ashrawi, Member of the PLO Executive Committee :: Ä¢¹½ÊÓÆµ Photo/Loey Felipe

Ms. Amina Mohammed, Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations :: Ä¢¹½ÊÓÆµ Photo/Loey Felipe

Ms. Hanan Ashrawi, Member of the PLO Executive Committee :: Ä¢¹½ÊÓÆµ Photo/Loey Felipe

PANEL I: From left (Mr. Ilan Papp¨¦, Mr. Victor Kattan, Mr. Eugene Rogan, H.E. Ms. Maria Rubiales de Chamorro, Mr. Avraham Burg, Ms. Hanan Ashrawi) :: Ä¢¹½ÊÓÆµ Photo/Loey Felipe

Ms. Amina Mohammed, Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations :: Ä¢¹½ÊÓÆµ Photo/Loey Felipe

Overview

Ä¢¹½ÊÓÆµ Forum on the Question of Palestine ¡°70 Years after 1948 ¨CLessons to Achieve a Sustainable Peace¡± was convened in New York on 17 and 18 May 2017, under the auspices of the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People (CEIRPP). Ahead of the public Forum, on 16 May the Committee held closed consultations with representatives of civil society organisations from Palestine, Israel and throughout the world.

The Forum brought together Palestinian, Israeli and international experts, representatives of the diplomatic community and civil society to highlight the need to substantively address issues related to the 1948 war and subsequent mass displacement and uprooting of Palestinians in the context of, and vital for the success of, efforts to achieve a comprehensive, just and lasting settlement of the question of Palestine. A series of moderated interactive panels, chaired by Committee Bureau members, focused on an evaluation of the events of 1948, known in Arabic as ¡°Al-Nakba¡± (¡°the catastrophe¡±) and their continued relevance today, the ongoing displacement of Palestinians, questions of accountability and transitional justice, and ways out of the political impasse between Palestine and Israel. The Forum provided experts and civil society organizations with a valuable advocacy platform to inform policy and diplomatic action on the question of Palestine at Ä¢¹½ÊÓÆµ Headquarters.

Short clips from the documentary film ¡°Voices Across the Divide¡± were shown at the beginning of each panel session.

Remarks by?Ms. Amina J. Mohammed (Ä¢¹½ÊÓÆµ Deputy Secretary-General) at the Ä¢¹½ÊÓÆµ Forum on the Question of Palestine

Opening session:
Ms. Amina J. Mohammed –?Ä¢¹½ÊÓÆµ Deputy Secretary-General
H.E. Mr. Fod¨¦ Seck – Chair of the Palestinian Committee, PR of Senegal to the Ä¢¹½ÊÓÆµ
Ms. Hanan Ashrawi –?Member of the PLO Executive Committee
Panel I:
Chair:?H.E. Ms. Maria Rubiales de Chamorro (Vice-Chairman of the Palestinian Committee, PR of?Nicaragua to the Ä¢¹½ÊÓÆµ )
Moderator:?Mr. Eugene Rogan
Panelists: Ms. Hanan Ashrawi, Mr. Avraham Burg, Mr. Victor Kattan, Mr. Ilan Papp¨¦

Panel II :
Chair:?H.E. Mr. Carmelo Inguanez (Vice-Chairman of the Palestinian?Committee, PR of Malta to the Ä¢¹½ÊÓÆµ)
Moderator:?Ms. Mae Elise Cannon
Panelists:?Mr. Seraje Assi ,?Ms. Suhad Bishara ,?Mr. Itay Epshtain

Panel III:
Chair: H.E. Mr. Dian Triansyah Djani (Permanent Representative of Indonesia to the Ä¢¹½ÊÓÆµ)
Moderator: Mr. Mouin Rabbani
Panelists: Ms. Susan Akram, Ms. Lubnah Shomali, Ms. Jessica Nevo,?Ms. Francesca Albanese

Panel IV:
Chair: H.E. Ms.?Anayansi Rodr¨ªguez Camejo, ?(Permanent Representative of Cuba to the Ä¢¹½ÊÓÆµ)
Moderator: Mr. Fateh Azzam
Panelists: H. E. Mr. Riyad Mansour,?Mr. Yossi Beilin,?Ms. Phyllis Bennis,?Mr. Obada Shtaya
Closing session:
H.E. Mr. Fod¨¦ Seck – Chair of the Palestinian Committee, PR of Senegal to the Ä¢¹½ÊÓÆµ
H.E. Mr. Riyad Mansour –?Permanent Observer of the State of Palestine?to the Ä¢¹½ÊÓÆµ