Sinn Féin President Mary Lou McDonald TD has expressed her condolences following the death this morning of the General Secretary of the Palestinian Liberation Organisation, Saeb Erekat.

She said:

“This morning the world is a much sadder place following the loss of the human rights activist and campaigner for Palestinian liberation, Saeb Erekat.  

“As General Secretary of the Palestinian Liberation Organisation (PLO), Saeb Erekat, was a tireless fighter for the rights and freedom of the Palestinian people throughout his life.  

“Over the course of the last three decades, Saeb had been central to many negotiations and worked to deliver a lasting solution to end the occupation and oppression of the Palestinian people. 

“Saeb adopted a principled and pragmatic approach to these negotiations in the hope of bringing the conflict to a conclusion and ensuring the human rights of the Palestinian people are respected.

“Throughout the duration of his activism, Saeb was a keen advocate of building international relations with other struggles across the globe, particularly acknowledging the value of international solidarity in highlighting the plight of the Palestinian people.  

“Sinn Féin had a longstanding friendship with Saeb Erekat and our representatives have had the honour of meeting him on several occasions,

“Saeb was a dear friend of Ireland and a friend of the Irish people.

“The only fitting legacy to this remarkable and resilient campaigner for peace and justice is a permanent homeland for the Palestinian people.

“On behalf of Sinn Féin, I want to extend my solidarity to the family and comrades of Saeb Erekat. Ar dheis Dé go raibh a anam dílis”