Portrait of Yasser Arafat

Yasser Arafat

Palestinian leader

Contemporary influential 136 sayings

Sayings by Yasser Arafat

We will continue to resist until the last occupier leaves our land.

1994 — Speech in Gaza
General Unverifiable

The struggle for Palestine is a struggle for human rights and international law.

1974 — Speech to the UN General Assembly
General Unverifiable

The land of Palestine is holy, and we will defend it with our blood.

1996 — Speech in Jerusalem
Religious Unverifiable

We seek a just and lasting peace, but not a peace of surrender.

1988 — Speech in Amman
General Unverifiable

We are fighting for the right of return, which is a sacred right.

1982 — Speech in Beirut
General Unverifiable

The international community must uphold its responsibility towards the Palestinian people.

1974 — Speech to the UN General Assembly
General Unverifiable

The Palestinian struggle is a struggle against injustice and oppression.

1970 — Interview with Oriana Fallaci
Political Unverifiable

We will liberate our land inch by inch, until the entire homeland is free.

1972 — Speech in Damascus
General Unverifiable

The Palestinian people are capable of making their own destiny.

1973 — Speech in Algiers
General Unverifiable

We will not allow anyone to divide our people or our land.

1994 — Speech in Gaza
General Unverifiable

The Palestinian revolution is a revolution of hope and determination.

1979 — Speech in Havana
General Unverifiable

Our commitment to Jerusalem is unwavering.

2000 — Speech in Ramallah
General Unverifiable

The Palestinian state will be a democratic and independent state.

1988 — Speech in Cairo
Political Unverifiable

We will continue our struggle until victory is achieved.

1982 — Speech in Beirut
General Unverifiable

I am willing to kill for my people, so I should not be able to lie and cheat for them?

Unknown — Unspecified speech, reflecting a pragmatic and controversial approach to leadership.
Self-Deprecating Unverifiable

My hero is Abraham Lincoln.

Circa 1982 — Reported by Norman Cousins to his daughter after a meeting with Arafat.
General Unverifiable

The Palestinian people have no national identity. I, Yasser Arafat, man of destiny, will give them that identity through conflict with Israel.

1984 (year of book publication) — Attributed in 'Arafat: Terrorist or Peacemaker' by Alan Hart, though its verifiability is disputed b…
General Unverifiable

By God, I have not found it invincible... I wish all my nation was with me to see the feebleness of this army.

1983 — Commenting on the Israeli Army after its 1982 invasion forced the PLO to flee Beirut.
Self-Deprecating Unverifiable

Peace for us means the destruction of Israel.

1970 — Speech in Cairo
General Unverifiable

The Palestinian people do not exist. The creation of a Palestinian state is only a means for continuing our struggle against the state of Israel.

1977 — Interview with Dutch newspaper Trouw
General Unverifiable
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