Palestinians await UN address

With only hours left until the Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas is set to address the UN General Assembly and seek recognition for a Palestinian state it is still not clear what will happen New York. Nor what the reactions will be.

Some are anticipating clashes after the Friday prayer that will start around 1 pm local time (the call for prayer can now be heard in East Jerusalem), especially around the checkpoint at Qalandiya. Some 20 Palestinians were injured there Wednesday in confrontations with Israeli soldiers. Meanwhile there is also great anticipation ahead of the speech itself. Big tv screens will broadcast live from places like the central Ramallah roundabout, al-Manara, and demonstrations are expected later in the afternoon.

Though a recent survey indicated over 80 percent support for the statehood bid, many remain indifferent to it, expecting it not to change anything on the ground. Yet others offer sharp criticism against the lack of transparency in the process leading up to the UN bid, as well pointing out that the consequences of changing the representation from PLO to a state are unclear, and, argue critics such as Omar Barghouti, "runs the risk of surrendering the right of return" for Palestinian refugees.

Despite this thousands of people took to the street Wednesday in support of the bid. In Ramallah youths were chanting "al shab yurid hurriya wa istiqlal" - the people demand freedom and independence. Even among those who expressed joy and pride few expected any immediate change, but hoped that the statehood bid will offer opportunitities to end the Israeli occupation and offer peace where two decades of negotiations have failed.