mahmoud abbas is set to ask the u.n. to recognize palestine as a sovereign country. israel and the u.s., they oppose that pof. they want palestinians to achieve statehood through peace talks with israel so they can have a greater say in the outcome. if abbas puts the measure before the security council, the u.s. says it's going to block it. all this playing out on the streets as well. young palestinians who want statehood threw rocks and bottles at israeli border guards. that happened today. the israelis responded with rubber bullets and stun grenades. president abbas has called for protesters to keep things peaceful. israel has put additional forces along the border in case things get out of hand. and pakistan absolutely furious over accusations by the chair of the joint chiefs of staff, admiral mike mullen. for the first time publicly he is accusing pakistan's spy agency, the isi, of supporting the insurgents who attacked the u.s. he embassy in kabul. it was carried out by a group closely tied to the taliban. >> they act as a veritable arm of pakistan's internal services intelligence agency. with isi support, the operatives planned and conducted that truck bomb attack as well as the assault on our embassy. >> well, these aren't the first allegations that pakistan was helping terrorists, but mullen is the highest ranking u.s. official to make those claims publicly and forcefully. stocks earlier today tumbled at the open, but they are trying, they are trying to stage a comeback. right now we're looking at the dow blue chips. they are up just a smidge, 0.49 points there. it's been a brutal week for investors. the dow fell more than 300 points, that was just yesterday. well, political gridlock is pushing washington closer now to a partial government shutdown next week. early today house republicans pushed through a bill funding the federal government until november 18th, but it cuts money for fema's disaster budget. senate democrats, they don't like it. the house plans to adjourn today, so that means the senate must pass the house bill as-is or allow a shutdown. he is leading in the polls, so republican rivals, they all ganged up on him. rick perry at last night's presidential debate. he and mitt romney accused each other of flip-flopping on issues. >> there's a rick perry out there that's saying, almost a quote, it says that the federal government shouldn't be in the pension business, that it's unconstitutional. unconstitutional, and it should be returned to the states. so you better find that rick perry and get him to stop saying that. >> i think americans just don't know sometimes which mitt romney they're dealing with. he's for obama care and now he's against it. >> congresswoman michele bachmann called for a zero tax rate, that is no federal income tax. bachmann says it's your money and you should keep it. so there are huge celebrations in yemen right now. that country's president returned from medical treatment in saudi arabia today. ali abdallah salei was wounded in june during an attack on the presidential compound. many think his return will only whip up tensions between his supporters and anti-government protesters. all right. we love this story. diana is giving it another shot, another try. tonight she's going to jump in the water in cuba hoping to become the first person to swim to florida without a shark cage. well, nyad called off her mission before earlier this summer after 29 hours in the water after a severe asthma attack. well, nyad was 61 then. now she's 62, trying again. good for her. well, everybody earns -- everybody learns e questiquals . they say they've made tiny particles travel faster than the speed of light. granted it's just 60 billionth of a second faster but they believe they have a new definition. the battle for palestinian statehood, it's front and center on the world stage today. palestinian leader mahmoud abbas, he's set to make a formal request in the next hour to become a full member state of the united nations. so he knows already that his bid cannot succeed. that's because it's going to need to pass a vote by the u.n. security council, and even if it does, the u.s. has pledged a veto. the united states, just one of five countries with veto power. the others china, france, russia, and the united kingdom. elise is joining us live at the u.n. you have broken many stories in covering the united nations general assembly. you've watched all of these power players get together. this is a real showdown here. why do you suspect that the palestinian leader is making this push right now? >> reporter: well, suzanne, we understand from our sources that the reason they're going it right now -- for two reasons. first of all, the palestinians say, listen, the oslo accords were 18 years ago when they first decided to start negotiations and they haven't gotten their international legitimacy from these negotiations. they want to get their international legitimacy from the international community, and then they want to negotiate with the israelis as two states negotiating, not one occupying power to the occupying people. secondly, they say listen, we're really frustrated with u.s. policy. they're frustrated with u.s. policy and they feel they really have no option. it's a desperate attempt, suzanne. >> so if abbas know that is u.s. is going to veto this, why go forward? is this all about symbolism? what do they take away, elise? help us understand. >> reporter: well, it's a little bit about symbolism, and it's a little bit about trying to strengthen his hand, kind of upping the ante as they say. he's hoping to sweeten the pot for a peace deal and right now the international community is really dancing on a pin. he's leaving from new york with a sword other the head of the international community trying to get everybody to come up with the best option, and then he'll agree to negotiations, but he's going to leave this, let it brew for a few weeks and see what the international community comes up with for him. he's holding all the cards right now. >> do we think that abbas by going forward to the international body, is he going to be able to privately perhaps squeeze anything out of president obama or anything out of the israeli leader, benjamin netanyahu? >> well, right now we understand that secretary of state hillary clinton is negotiating between the jael israelis and palestini. the quartet is the u.s., the eu, the u.n., and russia, these terms of reference. what he's hoping to get are a couple things. he wants a negotiation based on these 1967 borders that president obama mentioned in his may speech with agreed upon swaps. what he really wants is something that will stop settlements. we've been watching this last year with settlements being the real issue between israelis and palestinians not being able to. what he wants is a settlement freeze. we don't understand that he will be able to get that explicitly, but we do understand that in this statement perhaps the parties will agree not to provocative actions during the period of negotiations, and implicit that's a settlement freeze. but right now we understand that israeli prime minister netanyahu is willing to play ball. he's softening a little bit, but we understand they will be negotiating throughout the day. everyone really is looking to see how they can get president abbas to walk away from the u.n. security council. >> you have been talking to a lot of these leaders as well as the diplomats there. is there a sense of nervousness at all when they see what is taking place in israel, when they see folks starting to throw rocks and you have israelis responding with weaponry. do they worry this may make the situation escalate there? >> reporter: absolutely. this is what everybody was fearing would happen, that this bid for statehood would create expectations in the palestinian territories and they would be dashed and then the palestinians might resort to violence. if you look around the rest of the region right now, these arab springs, right now the people are kind of running the street, if you will, and you don't have these friendly leaders that are willing to guarantee peace between israelis and palestinians. you saw what happens in egypt last week with that attack on the israeli embassy. israel is facing a much more hostile environment and some diplomats do think that might give israel the impetus to negotiate. certainly the united states has been very concerned about a possible third and even arabs did not want president abbas to go the u.n. security council. >> excellent reporting. we appreciate it. we will be keeping our eyes on both of those very important speeches, the one from the palestinian leader abbas as well as the israeli leader benjamin netanyahu. and it all comes down to really what happens at the u.n. today. we're going to be hearing from the palestinian leader who is demanding palestine be recognized by the united states -- rather by the u.n. as its own state and then later from israeli prime minister benjamin netanyahu. he's going to take the stage. many assume that obviously he's going to be shooting that down. that is not a surprise. we're going to be keeping a close eye on all of these speeches and the developments out of the united nations all day today on cnn "newsroom." we're also keeping a close eye on some other things. some other stories we're covering. fact checking last night's gop debate from social security claims to immigration reform. we are also monitoring your money in the volatile markets. we'll have a live report from the new york stock exchange. and then check this out. dorm life. looking pretty sweet. yeah, on some college campuses, far from the cinder block cubicles i actually recall. and conservatives, their most famous voices are gathering in orlando today for their annual conference. we'll take you there live. and later, say it ain't so, soap opera fans need an extra tissue box today. 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[ indistinct talking and laughter ] whew! i think it's worth it. working with a partner you can trust is always a good decision. massmutual. let our financial professionals help you reach your goals. i tell you what i can spend. i do my best to make it work. i'm back on the road safely. and i saved you money on brakes. that's personal pricing. well, when they weren't taking shots at rick perry, the republican presidential candidates, they took aim at president obama during last night's debate. we heard a lot of claims, allegations flying back and forth. our truth squad has been taking a closer look to separate fact from political fiction. cnn's tom foreman, who is joining us from washington. tom, we heard a lot of things last night. let's start with mitt romney talking about how president obama has handled israel and the palestinians. here is what he said last night. >> the president went about this all wrong. he went around the world and apologized for america. he addressed the united nations in his inaugural address and chastised our friend israel for building settlements and say nothing about ma hhamas launchi thousands of rockets. >> so, tom, what do we know about that? true or false? >> well, he threw israel under the bus. that's sort of the definitive statement here. there has been a lot of reporting in the past few days saying hold on a minute before you say all of this. first of all, when president obama spoke to the u.n. the first time, yes, he talked about the rights of the palestinians, concerns about the palestinians, but he did talk about the rocket attacks on the israelis and the concerns about that. when he spoke to them most recently he also brought up those problems. he did talk about how the settlements by the israelis were a problem, but it's worth pointing out the bush administration did the same thing. they said these are a problem. the simple truth is a lot of analysts have looked at his comments and said he's not really that far off from what previous presidents have been saying about the situation. so to characterize him as being somehow way off the mark we're going to say that's misleading because it's very much like what we've seen many times before. >> he sounds very much like president bush on that matter. >> yes, very much. >> social security has been a big issue for rick perry. here is what he said about the program last night. >> for those people that are on social security today for those people that are approaching social security, they don't have anything in the world to worry about. >> how does that claim check out, tom? >> well, that claim -- i'll tell you what happened with that claim. when he talks about social security not being something that you can rely on this way, the simple truth is he's saying to seniors, you have to be able to rely on this. you know what? he said in an editorial on fok.com the very same day the system is broken, it can't go on, it's got to be fixed. what he's doing is tailoring his message to whatever group is listening. politicians do it all the time but if you heard just one part it would be misleading. >> finally what about the comment from congresswoman michele bachmann on health care reform? let's listen. >> the signature issue of barack obama and his presidency has been the passage of obama care. this week a study cape out from ubs that said the number one reason why employers aren't hiring is because of obama care. >> so do we know, true or not? >> well, true or not? well, this is a kind of tricky thing. think about what she said, this company ubs. ubs is an investment company, a global financial services firm, and that does not seem to have risen to the lel of being a study. it was more of an assessment for investors where they did mention obama care as being sort of a prime concern, but they've previously put out information that said there are a lot of concerns in our economy right now. so for her to sort of depict it as the great job killer in america is obama care, sort of ignores everything else out there affecting our job market some of which she could argue is the president's fault. she's suggesting obama care is the big, big factor. we're going to say that's at very best true but incomplete. we had all of our great truth squad folks in their fortress of solid working on this all night. i'm fearful we will be doing this all year. >> i don't envy you on that. we'll see if somebody hits that ultimate true yarrow on the other side. to news about your money. stock markets are struggling back and forth today. investors still reeling from yesterday's big, big plunge. all in all, it's been a pretty brutal week for the markets and your 401(k). felicia taylor, tell us how this week is ending. what are we seeing here? >> reporter: well, suzanne, we're seeing a lot of churning basically. no major economic reports or corporate news to trade on. the negative sentiment continues but the losses aren't as bad as yesterday. the market will continue to do this when it tries to find a level for itself. there's no real direction, but thankfully not all dow components are falling like yesterday. the ten-year bound is bouncing off a record low and right now we've got the dow, nasdaq, and the s&p all up and it's the nasdaq leading the way. it's up more than 1%. the dow by the way has fallen 675 points over just the last two days. some analysts expect a push higher into the afternoon but then possibly we will see the sell-off happening into the weekend and people don't want to hold onto those positions in case there's any headlines coming out from the euro zone or possibly greece. >> i certainly hope next week is a better week than this one. i want you to check out this story. it's been a wile for me since i was in college, but my -- >> yeah, it's been a while. >> my dorm room had none of these comforts. the kind of comforts you imagine at home. we were lucky to have that minnie fridge you could rent and put that in your dorm room. check it out. this is what they have now. colleges and universities across the country, they're going all out with these extreme dorms to attract students. take a look at these pictures. they've got movie thee tours, tanning beds, fitness centers, private bathrooms. these private companies are getting involved in all of this. they're building these cottage-style apartments just for students. a lot of them have the granite countertops, luxurious bathrooms. that's like better than my house. >> i was going to say, i don't have a tanning bed in my house. >> who needs to go home to your parents when you got all that? that's unbelievable. >> exactly. but then the question is if you start out this way in college, what's the next step? >> you're going to be sorely disappointed when you have a job and you realize life isn't like this. yeah, you got to work for that. >> reality is a whole different story. >> all right. felicia, have a great weekend. good to see you. >> you, too. nasa announces a major change in the path of that falling satellite that we've been telling you about. so now it could, could land in north america. we're going to have a live update on what led to that change and what does that mean. up next. eal. 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[ female announcer ] only from aveeno. this year as the fifth an verse of cnn heroes. over the year we've received more than 40,000 nominations from you, our viewers, in more than 100 countries. we've introduced you to an extraordinary individual each week. this week we reveal our top ten cnn heroes of 2011. >> i'm anderson cooper. all year we've been introducing you to everyday people who are changing the world. now we announce the top ten cnn heroes for 2011. the honorees are amy stokes. bruno serato is sevening up a solution so motel kids don't go to bed hungry. derreck. diane latiker, she hoped other door. eddie canales helps young football players. elena miranda offers poor children a way out of the trush dump and into school. patrice diagnosed with incurable cancer started feeding and coaching children from haiti's slums. robin lim helps poor women have healthy pregnancies and safe delivers. sal pays por sefor rent, food a basic necessities and taryn davis who build a sisterhood of healing for war widows. which one inspires you most? go to cnnheroes.com to vote. the cnn hero of the year will be awarded $250,000. who is it going to be? you decide. go to cnnheroes.com now to vote for the most inspirational hero online and on your mobile device. all ten will be honored live at cnn heroes, an all-star tribute hosted by anderson cooper on sunday december 11th, but only one will be named cnn hero of the year. well, his own state, that is what palestinian president mahmoud abbas is demanding today at the u.n. general assembly, but just who is abbas? what is his role in the splintered politics of the middle east? we'll take a closer look at this key player. what is that? it's you! it's me? alright emma, i know it's not your favorite but it's time for your medicine, okay? you ready? one, two, three. 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[ male announcer ] we're not employers or employees. not white collar or blue collar or no collars. we are business in america. and every day we awake to the same challenges. but at prudential we're helping companies everywhere find new solutions to manage risk, capital and employee benefits, so american business can get on with business. ♪ here is a run down of some of the stories we are working on. the man behind the pitch for palestine's statehood. a proprofile of mahmoud abbas. and a woman who was the first to get a double hand transplant shows the amazing progress she's made. and soap op 3era fans, say good-bye to "all my children." why the soaps are becoming a thing of the past. they call him the head of the family, but wilma mud abbas finally become the father of a palestinian state. >> reporter: abbas has been at the garbining table in the middle east peace process begins the beginning along with yasser arafat. he was a founding member of fatah, the first guerilla group in the palestinian liberation organization. his reputation has always been as a moderate, pragmatic. by contrast with arafat's colorful charismcharisma, he. he played an important role in the peace accord with prime minister rat bean. after arafat's death in 2004 he took the reins becoming chairman of the palestinian authority and head of fatah. but not long after the movement splintered. in 2006 the radical islamic group hamas took power beating out the more moderate fatah party. hamas then seized control of gaza in 2007 leaving fatah in charge of the west bank. palestinian militants in gaza continued to fire rockets at israeli border towns, and israel responded with full force and a blistering attack in 2009. an israeli human rights organization put the palestinian death toll at more than 1,300. more than half of the dead they say were not soldiers. >> translator: we came back after the offensive and found the house i had spent my whole life building was no longer there. >> reporter: now, with a divided, scarred people, abbas is also faced with a peace process that has ground to a halt. a meeting at the white house in september of last year proved fruitless. israel has gone forward with the construction of jewish settlements in disputed parts of the west bank. a move that's infuriated abbas. >> so today the palestinian leader, he is ready to go it alone, without the united states or israel by demanding statehood from the united nations. abbas is expected to deliveries speech before the u.n. general assembly, that in the next hour. joining me live from new york to put all of this in perspective is a senior fellow at the hoover institution. thank you very much for being with us, professor. how important right now is president abbas' speech? do we think that is going to change at all this equation in terms of allowing statehood, palestinian statehood, to go forward? >> i think, suzanne, your narrative of mahmoud abbas is really fair to the man and fair to the record. this is abbas' moment, his rendezvous with destiny if you will. he's a man in his mid-70s. he believes this is his moment. he was always in arafat's shadow. he waited for diplomacy. diplomacy didn't yield much for him. he waited for president obama and that didn't work and i think he's come to this moment in his own biography and in palestinian history. >> how much of this is about symbolism, achieving a symbolic victory, and how much of this is actually about moving forward to achieve statehood? >> i think abbas is ready for a noble defeat. that's a term i would use for this. he's ready for a noble defeat. he's brought this bid to the united nations. he knows the morning after even if this bid were to succeed, the circumstances and the conditions of the palestinians on the ground would not change. but this is a man who witnessed the split that you talked about in your introduction between the west bank on the one hand and gaza on the other and he wishes to write a different kind of destiny. >> where does he go from here if this is all rejected? is it all for naught? what are we looking at next week or the week after? >> well, i think there is -- much is going to happen, by the way, at the u.n. for one, mahmoud abbas and the palestinian bidwill ha will hav secure nine votes. that may be the exit. that may be the solution for the obama administration is that the bids failed to get nine votes in the security council and we will have time for diplomacy. i think basically mahmoud abbas rolled the dice. he really doesn't know what happened, but he feels this is his obligation at this point in time. >> and what do you think the obama administration should do next? what should president obama do to try to get the israelis and the palestinians back together negotiating? >> i think president obama was really, in my opinion, very -- there was a kind of presumption on history. he came in with this conviction that he's going to succeed where 11 of his predecessors, kounted them from harry truman to barack obama, 11 of his predecessors had given the israeli/palestinian conflict a try and had failed. president obama believed he could troansform this conflict, solve it. he even said to so in his speech to the u.n. >> 11 of his predecessors could not do what he also vowed to do. thank you so much for joining us. obviously we'll be watching very closely what abbas and netanyahu both have to say this afternoon. all the turmoil in the west bank right now comes down to what actually happens today at the u.n. we're going to be hearing from, as we mentioned, mahmoud abbas, who is demanding palestine be recognized by the u.n. as its own state. later we're going to be watching for israeli prime minister benjamin netanyahu. many assume he will shoot down that proposition by the palestinians. we're going to keep a close eye on these developments all day. a life-changing operation turned an amputee into a self-sufficient woman. see what she's doing a year after a double hand transplant. . three smart new ways to sweeten. same great taste. new splenda® essentials™. 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[♪...] >> male announcer: now, for a limited time, your companion flies free, plus save up to 65%. call 1-800-sandals. conditions apply. each week our chief medical correspondent dr. sanjay gupta profiles an extraordinary person in a segment we call "the human factor." today he introduces us to sheila. she's the first woman in the united states to receive a double hand transplant. now, a year has passed since she got her new hands and sanjay reports on her amazing progress. >> reporter: imagining learning how to use someone else's hands as your own. >> pinch, pinch. >> reporter: that's a reality for sheila, the first woman in the united states to undergo a double hand transplant. >> i just remember being rushed to the hospital and in the er and then that's it. i was out. >> reporter: her hands and feet were amp tayed eight years ago after she contracted a bacterial infection. >> they were so lifeless, you know, and so black. >> reporter: she got prosthetics for her hands and feet but the idea of a possible future hand tra transplant was always on her hand. when the opportunity came, she went for it. >> i am amazed by my own progress. >> reporter: it's been a year since she got her new hands and all right she has hit several milestones. she can feel temperature, pain. she can feel various textures. it's the result of a lot of hard work. she undergoes six hours of physical therapy five days a week. >> for me to finally feel these things again, my hair, my face, even my jeans, that's something big for me. >> reporter: she says her ultimate goal is to live as independent a life as possible. >> this is actually my very first painting. >> reporter: she draws, she paints, she drives, she puts on makeup, finds a way around her kitchen, even clips her nails. >> i'm not able to pinch the mail clipper that well. i was able to figure out how i would do it for myself. that was my other way of figuring out how to be independent. >> reporter: the last eight years have been difficult, but she says she's overcome so much by believing it all happened for a reason. no matter how painful, she tries to always be positive. >> i don't give myself much of a choice but to keep going despite whatever obstacles i encounter in my life. >> reporter: dr. sanjay gupta, cnn, reporting. >> wow. what an amazing story. in addition to her physical therapy, we understand that sheila works one day a week every week. she hopes to be able to display her artwork at a local gallery soon. good for her. i've been in your shoes. one day i'm on p of the world... the next i'm saying... i have this thing called psoriatic arthritis. i had some intense pain. it progressively got worse. my rheumatologist told me about enbrel. i'm surprised how quickly my symptoms have been managed. 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[ boy ] hey, i thought these were electric? uh, it is, yeah, it's a chevy volt. so what are you doing at a gas station? well it still takes gas to go farther. but you're not getting gas. true. not this time. uh, don't have to gas up very often. so you have to go to the bathroom? no. yes you do. thought these were electric? yes, it's a uh, a chevy volt. so what are you doing at a gas station? well, conservatives are converging on orlando. they're not going to disney world. it's their version of the political action committee knowns a cpac. peter is part of the best political team on television. he's live from orlando. so, peter, first of all, i know you have been watching this very closely. a lot of folks who have been speaking, mitt romney just a little while ago hitting hard on an immigration issue. what do we know? >> reporter: that's right, suzanne. he had a well-received debate last night and landed a lot of clean hits on rick perry, specifically about the 2001 dream act that rick perry signed into law in texas that gave tuition breaks to the children of illegal immigrants. rick perry defended that saying this is the right thing to do. he just has a heart. well, mitt romney said he took a victory lap after the debate and took another shot. >> my friend governor perry said if you don't agree with his position on giving that in-state tuition to illegals, that you don't have a heart. i think if you're opposed to illegal immigration, it doesn't mean that you don't have a heart. it means that you have a heart and a brain. >> reporter: so you heard that line there. it got good applause here as mitt romney is trying to recover his position as the front-runner. he left today to do a fund-raiser in chicago. tonight he's going to speak in incompetence. >> pe >> i understand marco rubio is also making some waves. >> reporter: he is almost guaranteed to be number one on the vice presidential short list next year when republicans start sniffing around for who their running mate is going to be. a lot of republicans would love to see rubio actually won. he spoke by video yesterday at another conference right here in orlando. he got bigger plaus and bigger reception than most of the candidates who are running for president in person. he was supposed to speak in person but he has to stay in d.c. and deal with cr votes in the senate. he will do another video address today, but i guarantee you the crowd will be paying rapt attention to their favorite son in washington, marco rubio. >> thank you very much. for the latest political news, you know where to go, withcn cnnpolitics.com. i want to go to john zarrella live out of miami. john, it's this whole notion of this satellite, this space junk that is going to come through the atmosphere, it's going to land, and i understand now nasa is saying it could be north america? >> reporter: there's some talk now -- you have to remember this satellite is very erratic. it's tumbling. it's basically in a descending orbit and that's why nasa has been saying right along that they really could not predict exactly when or where. although for the past couple days they were saying north america was ruled out, but now nasa is saying north america is not completely out of the picture any longer. you know, it could be -- and they're saying that it looks like it will be probably sometime around midnight tonight. others are saying maybe a little earlier tonight. but it looks like it could be -- it's possible that some of it could fall over the united states. still a very slim chance nasa is saying, but, you know, the united states is back in that cone of uncertainty let's say. suzanne? >> we'll be looking out for it, watching out for it, john. and obviously you said it wasn't that dangerous, right? you have been telling us not to panic. that's still the word from nasa? don't put on the hard hat yet? >> absolutely. there's 26 pieces that they identified that will likely survive reentry. some of them are pretty big, but, again, remember, there's still a very small chance that it will hit land. it still could hit anywhere over the 70% of the earth that's covered by water. >> all right. john, thank you so much. keep us posted. >> absolutely. >> all right. thanks. we're just getting word now that the palestinian leader mahmoud abbas has officially handed his letter, this petition for statehood, to the secretary-general of the united nations ban ki-moon. that's first phase of what we are going to be seeing unfold this afternoon when he addresses the united nations general assembly. he will be calling for the united nations to recognize palestine as an official state. it is a showdown that we are watching this afternoon between the united states and israel on one side, palestine on the other. the whole issue, whether or not palestinian stayedhotehood shou achieved through the united nations or through negotiations with the israelis. we'll have more of that after the break. em go away. neutrogena skin clearing makeup has our proven blemish fighting formula so it clears your breakouts. now that's beautiful. neutrogena®. ♪ this ason, you needtruck le e silvera to take on that list oyours. t'chevy season of ding. and there isn a tt time for a truck, with chk rk after mark of pe doing per. ♪ go yor chevaler today. get the truck and g that list done ♪ at exxon and mobil, we engineer smart gasoline that works at the molecular level to help your engine run more smoothly by helping remove deposits and cleaning up intake valves. so when you fill up at an exxon or mobil station, you can rest assured we help your engine run more smoothly while leaving behind cleaner emissions. it's how we make gasoline work harder for you. exxon and mobil. you have options. you can attend our online program or if you prefer a classroom experience... look no further than your own neighborhood. we have over 200 campuses and learning centers around the country. where you can attend classes, career fairs and meet with students and faculty. today, you can go to school online, on-campus, or both. explore your options at phoenix.edu. ♪ it's real milk full of calcium and vitamin d. and tastes simply delicious. for those of us with lactose intolerance... lactaid® milk. the original 100% lactose-free milk. the united nations to our own richard roth who has been watching what is taking place there. richard, we're just getting information now that mahmoud abbas, the palestinian leader, has gone ahead and officially presented this letter to the international body requesting -- or that there is acknowledgement here for palestinian statehood. what can you tell us about that and what that means? >> that's right. well, this was long expected, but we are now also seeing video coming in. we've got video of leader abbas of the palestinians arriving to this meeting. also the united nations television is transmitting pictures of the actual meeting which i'm going to turn away to look at to see if the letter is being handed. yes, we see video of the letter being handed right now by the palestinian leader. this historic moment, possibly also a letter of explanation. here it is, let's listen if there is any audio there. well, it's hard to hear. that is -- please take that picture off. that's the general assembly where -- there we go. all right. well, the palestinian leader handing over this letter saying the palestinians indeed want statehood and that was long expected and it is historic. now it goes to the security council and in a few minutes we'll eventually hear from the palestinian leader, mr. abbas, to the entire general assembly. >> richard, do we know who's actually going to be there in the audience, who's going to be anticipating and watching this very important moment, the delegations? >> well, you're going to have more world leaders than usual on the third day of a conference like this. you will -- we've seen various prime ministers and heads of state would normally would be long gone entering. i think you're going to see a full house with rapturous applause when the palestinian leader speaks and probably announces what he has done. statehood is not guaranteed. the u.s. says it will veto and the security council should it come to that, the palestinians need nine votes no inn approval also on that same 15-nation body. as they have also said, in the end they may accept a lesser grade but still improved observer state status, more rights, still don't have the full access as a "member state" and all that's granted in the unis.n. system. >> richard, i understand this creates excitement, people are wondering how this is all going to play out. what's the buzz? >> the palestinian story is really all that everyone's talking about. the ahmadinejad antisemitic rant yesterday was sort after side show for a few hours. it is the palestinians who have always asked for attention of the world. they feel they haven't gotten it with the u.s. blocking at various points in the security council. so it is the palestinians that have dominated and captured media attention here at the united nations. you see all those cameras that were there for the toe toe opportunity. there would have been more had the u.n. allowed access. i think it will be an historic moment no matter what the future holds when mr. abbas speaks to the general assembly, along with the prime minister and that direct talks between the two are what is needed and that he favors the statehood only after a peace agreement is formed, statehood for both jewish and palestinian people. >> richard, how soon are we to those remarks, do you think, for mahmoud abbas? >> i think we're less than 30 minutes away. >> all right, richard. thanks. we'll be following this. obviously we'll take it live as soon as that happens. the palestinian leader mahmoud abbas going before the united nations, a very important and, as richard said, historic occasion. we'll be watching that and will bring that to you live as soon as it happens. well, imagine getting hit day in and day out. it is like the life of a boxer, right? next, see what this doctor is doing to help prevent future brain trauma. moisturizing lotion.ily the natural oatmeal formula improves skin's health in one day, with significant improvement in 2 weeks. i found a moisturizer for life. [ female announcer ] only from aveeno. hey, jessica, jerry neumann with a policy question. jerry, how are you doing? fine, i just got a little fender bender. oh, jerry, i'm so sorry. i would love to help but remember, you dropped us last month. yeah, you know it's funny. it only took 15 minutes to sign up for that new auto insurance company but it's taken a lot longer to hear back. is your car up a pole again? [ crying ] i miss you, jessica! jerry, are you crying? no, i just, i bit my tongue. [ male announcer ] get to a better state. state farm. so if you get hit in the head every day, you're likely to have some brain problems, right? well, that's the life after professional boxer. cnn's soledad o'brien has the story of a doctor and a boxing enthusiast who's been studying long-term consequences of getting hit day in and day out. >> i had a chance to look at your mri scan and it shows a little atrophy or shrinkage of the brain. it is probably from boxing. >> reporter: dr. barry jordan, is a renowned neurologist who specializes in brain injury at burke rehabilitation hospital in new york. his patient, once the world middleweight champion. when you were at the height of your career, when was that? >> 1988. when i fought thomas hearns. >> you won. >> you know, i won the title. >> reporter: after years in the ring, boxing brought him to dr. jordan. >> if you have multiple concussio concussions, there's always a risk of chronic brain injury. you may have problems with memories. you may have difficulty with walking. >> reporter: dr. jordan started tracking more than 300 retired boxers to measure the long-term effects of all those punches. >> this is a scan of a boxer compared to a normal control. you can tell the colors are just not as robust. here's another scan showing fibers between a boxer and a normal control. >> oh, my gosh. the boxer is missing so much. >> that's one of the things that you see, is that these athletes may have the shrinkage or atrophy of the brain. now close your eyes. >> reporter: for patients like iran barkley, there's little to do. but the research could help others. >> through understanding chronic brain injury and boxing we might be able to learn something about alzheimer's. >> reporter: dr. jordan says more comprehensive medical monitoring before and during fights could help minimize injuries. >> boxing is a dangerous sport. there's no way you're going to make it 100% safe but i think you can always make it safer. >> reporter: reporting for "in america," soledad o'brien, cnn, new york. >> a quick programming note -- this sunday soledad o'brien introduces you to a latina boxer who will fight in the first olympic boxing tournament to ever include women. cnn's latino in america 2 "in her corner" airs sunday september 25th at 8:00 p.m. eastern. top of the hour, i'm suzanne malveaux. want to get you up to speed. high noon means high drama. that at the united nations. we expect the palestinian leader at the podium just in a moment now. mahmoud abbas is going to ask the u.n. to recognize palestine as a sovereign country. now just moments ago he handed the formal letter to u.n. secretary-general ban ki-moon. israel and the u.s. oppose this move. they want palestinians to achieve statehood through peace talks with israel so they can have a greater say in the outcome. if abbas puts the measure before the security council, the u.s. says it's going to block it. so this is all playing out on the streets now. young palestinians who want statehood threw rocks an bottles at israeli border guards. that's happening today. the israelis responded with rubber bullets an stun grenades. president abbas has called for protesters to keep things peaceful. israel has put additional forces along the border in case things get out of hand. so pakistan now absolutely furious over accusations by the chair of the joint chiefs of staff, admiral mike mullen. for the first time publicly he is accusing pakistan's spy agency, the isi, of supporting the insurgents who attack the u.s. embassy in kabul just last week. among others. it was carried out by the haqqani network. that is a group that's closely tied to the taliban. >> the haqqani network, for one, acts as a veritable arm of pakistan's internal services intelligence agency. with isi support, haqqani operatives planned and conducted that truck bomb attack as well as the assault on our embassy. >> so these aren't the first allegations that pakistan was helping terrorists but mullah, the highest ranking u.s. official to make those claims so forcefully an publicly. mullen. jaycee dugard who was kidnapped as a child, held for 18 years, is now suing government claiming federal parole officers failed to keep track of her kidnapper. philip garrido was on parole for a kidnapping and rape conviction when he took dugard and the lawsuit says that parole officers visited his home just a dozen times in a decade. dugard was being held in the backyard but the parole officers never found her. teachers in being a cuacapuo are on the streets, not in the classroom. they say police must first provide more security before they go back to work. drug violence is growing in acapulco and teachers say they are afraid for themselves and their students. >> translator: allow us to return both our schools an our homes to normal. that's all we're asking for. it's something anybody anywhere in the world would want -- peace. >> teachers say 75 schools in the acapulco area have received threats since the academic year began just a few weeks ago. brian stowe is the paramedic who was savagely beaten outside dodger stadium in los angeles in march. he's talking now for the first time since that attack. the family's website says he was able to say his children's names and even to ask to see them. relatives say they're blown away, stowe was kicked, he was punched repeatedly in the head leaving him in a coma for months. two suspects have pleaded not guilty to that attack. this is the hour that palestinian leader mahmoud abbas has been waiting for. he's expected to speak before the united nations general assembly in a minute or so now. he'll make a formal request for palestinian statehood. it's going to need to pass a vote by the security council but if or when that happens, the united states still has pledged to veto that. so the u.s. is one of five countries with veto power. the others, china, france, russia and the united kingdom. cnn's senior united nations correspondent richard roth is joining us again live from the united nations to provide some perspective. so richard, just moments ago what we saw here was abbas handing this formal letter to the u.n. secretary-general ban ki-moon requesting statehood. tell us why he's doing this now. why is this an important significant moment for the possibility of this happening? >> well, when you become a state, you are granted a lot of powers. should it even come to it, if they indeed got statehood, you could have the palestinians asking the u.n. for help if they felt israel was attacking them, israel could certainly make the same claim. you have a huge powder keg among other issues. but it doesn't seem like it will come to that in a quick way because the united states has said it isretoe any statehood bid in the security council. we're listening to the president right now of armenia, they've been switching speaking slots. but this will still be a historic moment. the palestinians want to kick-start any type of movement, desperate, they say, that there is no progress for their situation while they have watched demonstrators topple governments in the region. tunisia, libya, egypt, possibly yemen, syria the struggle goes on. they're saying what about us? and the palestinian dignitary saying we're not the mafia, we deserve our own state. back to you. >> so richard, why is the united states against this? >> the u.s. thinks that the only way there will be a middle aeft peace -- this has been something the u.s. has insisted on for a lengthy time -- can only be face to face talks that will resolve this, not an international organization imposing something on the parties. israel has no faith in the united nations, doesn't think statehood is a productive way and it will only incite violence. the united states says you got to talk face to face. israel and the palestinians have a host of issues from settlement activity which the palestinians insist must be stopped in order for them to start talking, the israelis say, yes, we'll talk anytime, anywhere but these always end up leading to nowhere. border disputes. refugees. >> right. so richard, what happens today? is this more about symbolism? achieving some sort of symbolic victory if it is going to be vetoed anyway? does anything come of this process? >> well, the process starts with the handing over of that letter from the palestinian leader to secretary-general ban. it is certainly symbolic. we'll see what happens in the security council. as you were saying, the u.s. has a veto. it may not come to that. nine countries need to say yes before any resolution such as a statehood resolution could be accepted. you see ban ki-moon entering for this meeting with the palestinian leader. the palestinians -- this is their shining moment certainly to bring hope to the people back home. but as we've seen, there have been so many wrong turns, false alarms at middle ease paeft, how many peace conferences, how many photo opportunities on the east lawn. some say this is a different issue. you've been covering it for years. i'm sure traveling with presidents to the region. this just goes on and the world arrives to watch the palestinian leader speak. >> do we think at this point there is any way, because abbas is moving forward going before this international body of world leaders, does he think he can squeeze any concessions out of president obama or the israeli leader benjamin netanyahu? >> well, that's the thing. can he use this as a lever to get some movement going or any pressure. i mean israel's not going to budge on sol things. as long as the united states is lying in wait with a veto, there is a limit to what the palestinians can achieve. the aim is to have the so-called quartet -- russia, european union, u.s., u.n., come up with a timetable. that's the plan. soon after this meeting and speech there's going to be a statement from the quartet in the next few days announcing that there has to be this timetable with a plan for negotiations to begin, proposals for new borders, all destined to end one year from now around with an independent palestinian state. would be the 194th member. what's interesting by the way is that south sudan 193, a new member just a few weeks ago, they spoke. that's got to be hard for the palestinians to watch when they go forth. >> sure. the irony here -- >> and their application just took a few days. >> sure. not lost on anyone there. richard, hang on. just a few moments away from abbas' speech before the united nations. we'll bring it to you live when it begins. tha's what it feelse ke to be member.y. [ tires screech ] [ crying ] [ applause ] [ laughs ] [ tires screech ] [ male announcer ] your life will have to flash by even faster. autodrive brakes on the cadillac srx activate after rain is detected to help improve braking performance. we don't just make luxury cars. we make cadillacs. ichbts we are are just moments away from the united nations and mahmoud abbas. what should we be watching or listening for as he takes the stage? >> well, he's put himself in an extraordinarily difficult position. he's obviously going forward with the beginning of this process but he's in the ironic position of hoping that while he goes forward he doesn't have to complete it. >> all right, richard. i'm sorry to interrupt you here, if i can, i understand that he's getting a lots of applause as he's introduced. let's just listen in very quickly. >> translator: on behalf of the general assembly, i have the honor to welcome to the united nations his excellency, the chairman of the executive committee of the palestinian liberation organization and president of the palestinian authority, and i ask him to address the assembly. >> translator: in the game of god, moecht gracious, most merciful, mr. president of the general assembly, of the united nations, mr. secretary-general of the united nations, excellencies, ladies and gentlemen, at the outset i extend my congratulations to his excellency on his assumption of the presidency of the assembly for this session and i wish him every success. today i extend my sincere congratulations on behalf of the palestine liberation organization and the palestinian people to the government and people of south sudan for its deserved admission as a full member of the united nations wishing them progress and prosperity. i also congratulate the secretary-general, his excellency, mr. ban ki-moon for his election to a new term as the head of the united nations. this renewal of confidence reflects the world's appreciation for his efforts which have strengthened the role of the united nations. excellencies, the question of palestine is intricately linked with the united nations via the resolutions adopted by its various organizations and agencies and through the essential and lauded role of the united nations relief and works agency for palestine refugees in the near east which embodies the international responsibility toward the plight of palestine refugees who are the victims of the catastrophe that occurred in 1948. we aspire for, and seek, a greater and more effective role for the united nations and working to achieve a just and comprehensive peace in our region that ensures the inalienable legitimate national rights of the palestinian people as defined by the resolutions of international legitimacy embodied by the united nations. mr. president, ladies and gentlemen, a year ago, at the same time, and in this hall, distinguished leaders and head of delegations addressed the stalled peace effort in our region. everyone had high hopes for a new round of final status negotiations which had begun in early september in washington under the direct auspices of president obama and with the participation of the international quartet, as well as egypt and jordan. to reach within one year a peace agreement. we entered those negotiations with open hearts an attentive ears and sincere intentions and we were ready with our documents, our papers, and our proposals. but these negotiations broke down just weeks after they were launched. after this we did not give up and we did not cease our efforts for initiatives and contacts. over the past year, we did not leave a door to be knocked or channel to be pursued. or path to be taken and we did not ignore any formal or informal party of influence and stature to be addressed. we positively considered the various ideas and proposals and initiatives presented from many countries and parties. but all of these sincere efforts and endeavors undertaken by international parties were reput reputedly smashed against a rock of the positions of the israeli government which quickly dashed the hopes raised by the launch of negotiations last september. the core issue here is that the israeli government refuses to commit to terms of reference for the negotiations that are based on inlaw and u.n. resolutions. and it tragically continues to build settlements on the territory of the future state of palestine. settlement activities embody the core of a policy of colonial military occupation of the land of the palestinian people and all of the brutality of aggress and racial discrimination against our people that this policy entails. this policy which constitutes a breach of international humanitarian law and u.n. resolutions is the primary cause for the failure of the peace process, the collapse of dozens of opportunities and the burial of the great hopes that arose from the signing of the declaration of principles in 1993 between the palestine liberation organization and israel to achieve a just peace that would begin a new era for our region. the reports of united nations missions, as well as reports by several israeli institutions and civil societies convey a horrific picture about the size of the settlements campaign which the israeli government does not hesitate to boast about and which it continues to execute so the systematic confiscation of the palestinian lands and the construction of thousands of new settlement units in various areas of the west bank, particularly in the arab part of jerusalem, and throughout the west bank, and through the accelerated construction of the racist annexation wall that is eating up large tracts of our land dividing it into separate and isolated islands and camps destroying families and harming the lives of tens of thousands of families. the occupying power also continues to refuse issuing permits for our people to build an occupied east jerusalem, an at the same time it intensifies its decades-long campaign of the demolition and confiscation of homes displacing palestinian owners and residents under a mult multi-pronged policy of ethnic cleansing aimed at pushing them away from their ancestral homeland. moreover, matters have reached a point where orders have been issued to deport elected representatives from the city -- their city of jerusalem. the occupying power also continues to undertake excavation that threaten our holy places and its military checkpoints prevent our citizens from gaining access to their mosques and churches. it continues to besiege the holy city with a ring of settlements and with the annexation wall imposed to separate the holy city from the rest of the palestinian cities. the occupation is ration against time to redraw the borders on our land according to what it wants and to impose a fait accompli on the ground that changes the realities and undermines the realistic potential for the rise of the state of palestine. at the same time, the occupying power continues to impose a strict blockade on the gaza strip and to target palestinian civilians by assassinations, air strikes, artillery shelling, persisting with its war of aggression of three years ago on the strip which resulted in the massive destruction of homes, schools, hospitals, and mosques and thousands of martyrs and wounded. the occupying power also continues its incursions into areas of the palestinian national authority through raids, arrests, and killings at the checkpoints. in recent years, the criminal actions of armed settler militias who enjoy the special protection of the occupation army, these actions have intensified with the perpetration of frequent attacks against our people targeting their homes, schools, universities, mosques, fields, crops, and trees. today they killed one palestinian who was peacefully protesting. despite our repeated warnings, the occupying -- the derl authoriti israeli authorities have not acted to curb these acts and we hold them fully responsible for the crimes of the settlers. these are but a few examples of the policy of the israeli colonial settlement occupation and this policy is responsible for the repeated failure of successive international attempts to salvage the peace process. this policy will destroy the chances of achieving a two-state solution upon which there is an international consensus. and here i caution -- and i caution aloud -- this settlement policy threatens to also undermine the structure of the palestinian national authority and even end its existence. in addition, we now face the imposition of new conditions that have not previously been raised, conditions that will transform the raging conflict in our inflamed region into a religious conflict and a threat to the future of a million and a half palestinians, citizens of israel, a matter which we reject and which is impossible for us to accept being dragged through. all of the actions taken by israel in our country are a series of unilateral actions that are not -- that aim to entrench occupation. israel has re-established the administrative and military authority in the west bank with a unilateral decision an decided that its military authorities are the ones that determine the right of any of the citizens on whether to reside in any area of palestinian land and israel is the one that decides to confiscate our land and our water and to obstruct our movement as well as the movement of goods unilaterally. and yet they speak of unilateralism. despite our agreements and these agreements forbid unilateral individual actions, ladies and gentlemen, in 1974 our deceased leader, yasser arafat, came to this hall and assured -- and he assured the members of the general assembly of our affirmative pursuit for peace. he urged the united nations to realize that inalienable national rights of the palestinian people and he said, do not let the olive branch fall from my hand. do not let the olive branch fall from my hand. in 1988, president arafat again addressed the general assembly which convened in geneva to hear him. there he submitted the palestinian peace program adopted by the palestine national council at its session held that year in algeria. when we adopted this program we were taking a painful and very difficult step. for all of us. especially those -- including myself -- who were forced to leave their homes and their towns and their villages carrying only some of our belongings and our grief and our memories and the keys to our homes to camps of exile in the 1948 removal of a vibrant and cohesive society that had been contributing in the pioneering and living way in the cultural and economic renaissance of the middle east. yet, because we believe in peace, and because of our conviction in international legitimacy and because we have the courage to make difficult decisions for our people, and in the absence of absolute justice we decided to adopt the path of relative justice, justice that is possible, a justice that could correct part of the grave historical injustice committed against our people. thus, we agree to establish a state of palestine on only 22% of the territory of historical palestine. on all the palestinian territory occupied by israel in 1967. we, by taking that historic step, which was welcome by the states of the world, made a major concession in order to achieve a historic compromise that would allow peace to be made in the land of peace. in the years that followed, from the madrid conference, an the washington negotiations leading to the oslo agreement which was signed 18 years ago. white house garden and was linked with the letters of mutual recognition -- mutual recognition -- between the palestine liberation organization and israel. we persevered and dealt positively and responsibly with all efforts aimed at the establishment of a lasting peace agreement. yet, as we said earlier, every initiative an every conference and every new round of negotiations and every movement was shattered on the rock of the israeli settlement expansion project. mr. president, ladies and gentlemen, i confirm on behalf of the palestine liberation organization the sole legitimate representative of the palestinian people which will remain so until the end of the conflict in all its aspects and until the resolution of all final status issues i affirm the following -- number one, the goal of the palestinian people is a realization of their inalienable national rights and their independent state of palestine with east jerusalem as its capital on all the land of the west bank, including east jerusalem and the gaza strip which israel occupied in the june 1967 war, in conformity with the resolutions of international legitimacy and with the agreement of a just and agreed upon solution to the palestine refugee issue in accordance with resolution 194 as stipulated in the arab peace initiative which presented the consensus, arab and islamic, vision to resolve the core of the arab-israeli conflict and to achieve a just and comprehensive peace that we are committed to and work towards. to this we adhere and achieving this desired peace also requires a release of political prisoners and the prisoners of freedom and palestinian detainees in israeli prisons without delay. number two -- the palestine liberation organization and the palestinian peopled a here to the renouncement of violence and rejection an condemnation of terrorism in all its forms, especially state terrorism, especially state terrorism and the terrorism by settlers and we adhere to all agreements signed between the plo and israel. third -- we adhere to the option of negotiating a lasting solution to the conflict in accordance with resolutions of international legitimacy. here i declare that the plo is ready to return immediately to the negotiating table on the basis of the adopted terms of reference based on international legitimacy and a complete cessation of settlement activity. fourth -- our people will continue their popular peaceful resistance to the israel occupation, will continue their popular peaceful resistance to the israeli occupation and its settlement and apartheid policies and its construction of the racist annexation war and they receive support for their resistance which is consistent with international humanitarian law and international conventions and has the support of peace activists from israel and around the world reflecting an impressive, inspiring and courageous example of the strengths of this defenseless people armed only with their dreams, courage, hope and slogans in the face of bullets, tanks, tear gas and bulldozers. fifth -- when we bring our plight and our case to this international podium, it is a confirmation of our reliance on the political and diplomatic option and it is a confirmation that we do not undertake unilateral steps. our efforts are not aimed at isolating israel or delegitimizing it. but rather, we want to gain legitimacy for the cause of the people of palestine. we only aim to delegitimize the settlement activities, the occupation and apartheid and the logic of ruthless force. and we believe that all the countries of the world stand with us in this regard. i am here to say on behalf of the palestinian people and the palestine liberation organization, we exten our hands to the israel government and the israel people for peace making. i say to them let us urgently build together a future for our children where they can enjoy freedom, security and prosperity. let us build the bridges of dialogue instead of checkpoints and walls of separation. let us build cooperative relations based on parity an ebb w equity an friendship between two neighboring states, palestine and israel, instead of policies of occupation, settlement, war and eliminating the other. mr. president, excellencies, ladies and gentlemen, despite the unquestionable right of our people to self-determination and to the independence of our state as stipulated in international resolutions, we have accepted in the past few years to engage in what appear to be a test of our worthiness, entitlement and eligibility. during the last two years our national authority has implemented a program to build our state institutions. despite the extraordinary situation and the israeli obstacles imposed on us, a serious extensive project was launched that has included the implementation of plans to enhance and advance the judiciary, the apparatus for the maintenance of order and security, the development of administrative, financial and oversight systems, of upgrading the performance of institutions and enhancing self-reliance in order to reduce the need for foreign aid. with the thankful support of arab countries and donors from friendly countries, a number of large infrastructure projects have been implemented focused on various aspects of services with special attention to rural and marginalized areas. in the midst of this massive national project, we have been strengthening what we saw to be our future state. from the preservation of security for the citizen and public order, to the promotion of judicial authority and the rule of law, to strengthening the role of women, the legislation, laws an participation, to ensuring the protection of public freedoms and strengthening the role of civil society institutions, to institutionalizing rules and regulations for ensuring accountability an transparency in the work of our ministries and departments, to entrenching the pillars of democracy as the basis for the palestinian political life. when division struck the unity of our homeland, our people and our institutions, we were determined to adopt dialogue for the restoration of our unity. we succeeded months ago in achieving national reconciliation and we hope that its implementation will be accelerated in the coming weeks. the core pillar of this reconciliation was to turn to the people through legislative and presidential elections to be conducted within a year, because the state we want will be a state characterized by the rule of law, the exercise of democracy, and the protection of freedoms an equality of you a citizens without any discrimination and the transfer of power through the ballot box. the reports issued recently by the ad hoc liaison committee, the united nations, the world bank, and the international monetary fund, we believe have confirmed and loaded what has been accomplished and have considered it a remarkable and unprecedented model. the consensus conclusion of the ad hoc liaison committee of donor countries a few days ago here in this city describe what has been accomplish as, "a remarkable international success story," and confirmed the readiness of the palestinian people and their institutions for the immediate independence of the state of palestine. that was the statement of the international community. i do not believe that anyone with a shred of conscience can reject our application for a full membership in the united nations and our administration as an independent state. >> translator: mr. president, excellencies, ladies and gentlemen, it is no longer possible to redress the issue of the blocked horizon of the peace talks with the same means and methods that have repeatedly been tried and proven unsuccessful over the past years. the crisis is far too deep to be neglected and it is far more dangerous to be simply circumvented or postponed. it is neither possible for practical nor acceptable to return to conducting business as usual as if everything is fine. it is futile to go into negotiations without clear parameters, and in the absence of credibility and a specific timetable, negotiations will be meaningless as long as the occupation on the ground continues to entrench its occupation and continues to change the demography of our country in order to create a new basis on which to alter the borders. this is totally unacceptable. ladies and gentlemen, this is a moment of truth. our people are waiting to hear the answer of the world. will it allow israel to continue the last occupation in the world? we are the last people to remain under occupation. will the world allow israel to occupy us forever and will it allow israel to remain a state above the law an accountability? will it allow israel to continue rejecting resolutions of the security council and the general assembly of the united nations and the international court of justice and the positions of the overwhelming majority of countries in the world? is this acceptable? mr. president, the heart of the crisis in our area is very, very simple and obvious. either there is those who believe that we are an unnecessary people, unwanted people, in the middle east, or those who believe that in fact there is a missing state that needs to be established immediately. mr. president, ladies and gentlemen, i come before you today from the holy land, the land of palestine, the land of divine messages, ascension of the prophet mohammed and the birthplace of jesus christ, peace be upon him, to speak on behalf of the palestinian people in the homeland and in the dfac of all the tragedy, enough, enough, enough. it is time for the palestinian people to gain their freedom and independence. the time has come to end the suffering an the plight of millions of palestinian refugees in the homeland, to end their displacement and to realize their rights, some of whom were forced to take refuge more than once in different places of the world. at a time when the arab peoples affirm their quest for democracy in what is called now the arab spring, the time has come also for the palestinian spring, the time for independence. the time has come for our men, women and children to live normal lives. for them to be able to sleep without waiting for the worst that the next day will bring, for mothers to be assured that their children will return home without fear of being killed, arrested or humiliated. for students to be able to go to their schools and universities without checkpoints obstructing them. the time has come for sick people to be able to reach hospitals normally and for our farmers to be able to take care of their good land without fear of the occupation seizing the land and its water which the war prevents access to, or the fear of the settle ers with their gud dogs who attack the palestini s palestinians. they built on our lands their homes and pruned and burned olive trees that have existed in palestine for thousands of years. for prisoners of freedom to be released from the prisons and be returned to their families and their children to become a part of building their homeland for the freedom of which they have sacrificed so much. my people desire to exercise their right to enjoy a normal life like the rest of humanity. they believe in what a great poet said -- standing here -- standing here, staying here, permanent here, eternal here, and we have one goal, one goal, one goal -- to be. and we shall be. ladies and gentlemen, we profoundly appreciate and value the positions of all states that have supported our struggle and our rights and recognize the state of palestine following the declaration of independence in 1988, as well as the countries that have recently recognized the state of palestine and those that have upgraded the level of palestine's representation in the capitals. i also salute the secretary-general mr. ban ki-moon who said a few days ago a word of truth -- that the palestinian state should have been established years ago. be assured that this support for our people is more valuable to them than you can imagine. for it makes them feel that someone is listening to their narrative and does not try to ignore the tragedy and the horrors from the occupation of which they have so suffered and it re-enforces their hope that stems from the belief that justice is possible in this world. for the loss of hope is the most ferocious enemy of peace and despair is the strongest ally of extremism. i say the time has come for my courageous and proud people after decades of displacement an colonial occupation and ceaseless suffering to live like other peoples of the earth -- free in a sovereign and independent homeland. mr. president, i would like to inform you that before delivering this statement, i, in my capacity as president of the state of palestine, and chairman of the executive committee of the palestine liberation organization submitted to his excellency, mr. ban ki-moon, secretary-general of the united nations, an application for the admission of palestine on the basis of the borders of june 4th, 1967 with al qud as its capit capital. this is a copy of the applicati application. i call upon mr. secretary-general to expedite transmittal of our request to the security council and i call upon the distinguished members of the security council to vote in favor of our full membership. i also appeal to the states that have not yet done so to recognize the state of palestine. ladies and gentlemen, the support of the countries of the world for our endeavor is a victory for truth, freedom, justice, law, and international legitimacy and it provides tremendous support for the peace option and enhances the chances of success of the negotiations. excellencies, ladies and gentlemen, your support for the establishment of the state of palestine and for its admission to the united nations as a full member is the greatest contribution to peace making in the land of peace and throughout the world. mr. president, i have come here today carrying a message from a courageous and proud people. palestine is being reborn. this is my message. may all the people of the world stand with the people of palestine as it marches steadfastly to its appointment with history with freedom, with independence, right now. and i hope that we shall not wait for long. thank you all. >> palestinian leader mahmoud abbas you've been watching before the united nations general assembly to rapturous applause. that audience there, you can see the international body, many world leaders standing and applauding the leader of the palestinian authority, mahmoud abbas. he spoke for about 35 minutes or so before the international body. on the other side of your screen you are looking at the west bank, ramallah. that is where you have crowds of folks there chanting with all our soul we will sacrifice for you palestine. we're also being told inside the u.n. chamber the israelis did not stand for that speech. we expect to hear from the israeli prime minister benjamin netanyahu shortly who will counter this message saying that he believes that the only way to bring about palestinian statehood is through direct negotiations with israelis. we'll have more on this after the break. talk to former ambassador richard h p.aas and ur own fionnuala sweeney who is in ramallah. more after a quick break. your o? with over 30 years of medicare experience, 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[ male announcer ] absolutely. many medicare advantage plans can give you doctor, hospital and prescription drug coverage all in one plan. remember, the annual enrollment period is earlier this year. call unitedhealthcare now or visit us online for more information, or to get this free answer guide from unitedhealthcare medicare solutions. call right now. it was a moment they had all been waiting for in the west bank -- hundreds of palestinians gathered in arafat square to hear their leader mahmoud abbas make his case for statehood at the u.n. general assembly. you're looking at live pictures there out of ramallah. want to bring in our own fionnuala sweeney who joins us from ramallah. we heard some chanting taking place. what's the mood, what's the feel of the folks who are there on the ground where you are? do they think this will make a difference? >> reporter: well, essentially the mood of anticipation throughout this week has now given rise to expectation. this is a people who are feeling like mahmoud abbas, their leader, has put them on the map. this is not that they expect to get a state tomorrow or indeed next month, it is a tactic for them to enoccupation as they see it. more than 83% of people support mahmoud abbas in this endeavor and this is a man who is very acutely aware of his legacy. he's 76 years of age. he has no achieved anything in the way of a peace agreement an this is his opportunity to put his people on the map and also protect his legacy. the difficulty will come in the weeks ahead when we see if there are any tangible effects on the ground as a result. >> thank you, fionnuala sweeney. you see the expectation of the palestinians is quite high, is that dangerous that you actually raise their expectations to put that kind of pressure. what happens next? >> well, it's extraordinarily dangerous. mahmoud abbas just gave a speech that was obviously well received in the halls of the general assembly, well received on the streets of ramallah. but i've got to tell you, suzanne, i thought that speech was disappointing, counterproductive and one day he will come back to rue it, i will predict. it was little more than an extended indictment of israel. there was nothing in it to make israelis think they had a partner for peace and at the end of the day, he has to negotiate not with all those people sitting in the general assembly but with the government of israel. he also did nothing to prepare his own people for the compromises and disappointments that are going to lie ahead of them. so i actually thought this speech was ill-advised and will make a difficult situation that much more difficult. i am -- i was not at all pleased to hear what i did. >> richard, in all the years that i've cover the u.n., i've really never seen the kind of applause mahmoud abbas got there, several occasions that he was applauded. does it matter that he has that kind of support within that international body? does that not create a little bit more pressure to bring the israelis, the united states, back to the table with the palestinians? >> i would not say, even though it is to be to get back to the table. but what matters is not getting back to the table but the willingness and ability to compromise once talks begin if in fact they do. again there was nothing in that speech to make israels want to compromise. plus now placing international pressure on israel now particularly with what's going on in the arab world is not going to make this or any israeli government more willing to take risks. israelis wake up in the morning now, they see people in the streets of egypt and the rest, this is not a speech meant to re-assure and as a result, i think it is really counterproductive. >> richard haassha