The chief reason why the PCP is in this gathering is mainly to say that it is necessary to stop. It is necessary to stop the escalation of violence. It is necessary to stop the war. It is necessary to stop the attacks that we condemn against civilians.

What is imperative at this moment is not to fuel the escalation with actions and statements that can have tragic consequences, but rather to open paths of dialogue, open paths of hope that can put an immediate end to confrontation and violence. To protect the populations, respect the Palestinians and Israelis who are suffering from this conflict and, with that, open a moment in which we can look to the next hours, the next days. Not from the perspective of the logic of revenge and violence, but rather from the logic of stopping and discussing peace.

We are witnessing a painful lesson that is decades old. Peace in the Middle East is impossible if there is no respect for the rights of all the peoples who live there. This is a dramatic and painful situation for all of us. It represents exactly that. There will be no peace in the Middle East if there is no respect for the rights of the peoples, including the Palestinian people. And this is what the Portuguese government and the Portuguese authorities must focus on. More than the logic of hasty black or white judgments. Hope is what is necessary at this moment to bring to everyone’s reflection. The hope that it is possible for the Israeli and Palestinian people to live in peace. Side by side with their States, independent and sovereign. And there is a solution to this hope and this solution does not have to be invented. It is reflected in the United Nations resolutions that for decades have given the Palestinian people their national rights and their right to build their independent and sovereign State on the pre-1967 borders. Living side by side. At peace with the State of Israel. Which is what the PCP defends and represents for this crisis.