Palestinians bid farewell to veteran leader Saeb Erekat
Hundreds of Palestinians gathered in the occupied West Bank yesterday to bid farewell to Saeb Erekat, the veteran negotiator who died of Covid-19 after decades pushing for a peace deal.
Three days of mourning have been declared by Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas, who wore a face mask as his former adviser’s coffin arrived at the presidential compound in Ramallah.
Draped in a Palestinian flag and a keffiyeh, the coffin was carried through a plaza where officials and relatives waited as a band played on.
Erekat served as secretary general of the Palestine Liberation Organisation and was a central player in the Oslo accords of the 1990s and other peace talks. The 65-year-old’s death on Tuesday was met with condolences from governments around the world, as well as the EU and the UN.
“Today, Palestine bids farewell to one of its fierce and passionate leaders,” the PLO said as it praised Erekat’s “resilience and dedication”.
Following the ceremony in Ramallah, the seat of the Palestinian government, the procession carrying Erekat’s coffin drove past the PLO headquarters and on to the city of Jericho in the Jordan Valley.
Mourners gathered outside Erekat’s home and accompanied the funeral procession, some carrying photos of him and clutching Palestinian flags. After prayers at a Jericho mosque, Erekat was buried in a cemetery lined with palm trees.
“To all the Palestinian people, my father is also your father and the father of the Palestinian cause,” his daughter Salam Erekat said by his graveside, her voice breaking.
Her father died three weeks after being taken to hospital in Jerusalem.
Erekat was a particularly vulnerable Covid-19 patient as he underwent a lung transplant in 2017.
More than 70,000 coronavirus cases have been registered in the Palestinian territories, with 607 deaths, World Health Organisation figures show.
Yesterday’s funeral fell on the 16th anniversary of the death of Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, whom Erekat served as he pushed for a twostate solution.
However, clinching such a peace deal proved to be impossible in his later life, with no Palestinian- Israeli talks having taken place in recent years.
Speaking of Erekat’s legacy, UN Secretary General, Antonio Guterres said “now is the time to continue his crucial work” and achieve a peace agreement.