Mahmoud Abbas reached out to one of the world’s most reviled heads of state, North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un, to thank him for supporting the Palestinian cause.
In a move that should come as no surprise to anyone who follows world politics, Palestinian Authority (PA) Chairman Mahmoud Abbas sent congratulations Tuesday to North Korean despot Kim Jong-un. While the two leaders rule populations thousands of miles away from each other, both use similar tactics of quashing free speech, jailing and torturing dissidents, and disseminating wildly false propaganda about internal and external opposition.
Abbas sent the greeting in honor of “Liberation Day,” wishing the North Korean strongman “all health and happiness,” according to the official PA news agency WAFA.
Kim has remained in international news as of late for threatening to fire missiles at the US Pacific territory of Guam, in addition to his widely publicized development of intercontinental ballistic cruise missile (ICBMs), which he intends to fit with nuclear warheads.
The extent to which North Korea is collaborating with Iran in their development of nuclear capabilities remains unknown, however, leading experts have pointed to the close ties between the two repressive regimes and their quests to acquire weapons of mass destruction. Satellite images also confirm the ties between Iran and North Korea and their cooperation on nuclear research.
Abbas’ telegram to Kim also “expressed appreciation for the … stable positions of Korea supporting the rights of [Palestinian] people and its … struggle to end the occupation and establish our independent state and its capital of East Jerusalem – the surest guarantee of realizing a just peace that all peoples of the region seek.”
