Nabil Shaath: Palestinian state will be announced in September

Palestinian Minister of Planning and International Cooperation Nabil Shaath said the Palestinian state will be announced at its specified time, September 2000, adding that this decision comes under to Palestinian sovereignty, and no one can interfere in it.

In an interview with the Saudi newspaper Okaz yesterday, Shaath denied any essential disputes between the Fatah movement and other Palestinian factions or that these disputes are the reason for halting the discussions, pointing out that if it was true Abu Ali Mustafa, the assistant secretary general of the People's Front for the Liberation of Palestine, and his comerades would not have come back to the Palestinian lands.

Concerning the issue of refugees, Shaath said this topic will be determined through UN resolution 194, which states the right of those refugees to return to their homes or receive compensation if they do not want to return.