The Executive Director of the Association of Palestinian Local Authorities (APLA), Eng. Abdallah Anati, received former Vice President of the European Parliament and President of Assopace Palestina, Luisa Morgantini, one of the most prominent Italian figures who has consistently carried the Palestinian cause to international platforms, making justice and Palestine a central pillar of her political and humanitarian journey.

The meeting discussed the evolving dynamics of international municipal engagement and explored joint efforts to build an Italian–Palestinian municipal alliance that links solidarity with development.

This encounter came within APLA’s ongoing efforts to strengthen the Palestinian presence in international municipal forums and to reorient decentralized cooperation as an effective tool for defending the Palestinian right to development, dignity, and justice. The discussion with Morgantini provided an opportunity to develop a shared vision on ways to enhance relations with Italian municipalities and to activate existing cooperation frameworks, turning them into tangible models of joint solidarity and development.

Eng. Anati emphasized that APLA views international cooperation as a natural extension of its national responsibility, noting that Palestinian Local Government Units have proven their ability to represent the voice of the Palestinian people with realism and courage. He stressed that building active partnerships with Italian municipalities represents a qualitative step toward consolidating Palestine’s position within the global municipal diplomacy framework.

For her part, Morgantini affirmed that Italian municipalities today possess both the moral authority and practical capacity to reaffirm the Palestinian cause in the European arena. She emphasized that Assopace Palestina seeks to translate these partnerships into concrete commitments that strengthen the ability of Palestinian municipalities to confront daily challenges and that direct city-to-city communication serves as a genuine tool for transforming the values of justice into impactful development and humanitarian initiatives.

Both parties agreed to continue their coordination and to expand the network of Italian cities engaged in cooperation programs, developing new initiatives that translate this collaboration into tangible development projects that serve local communities and reinforce the role of Palestinian municipalities as active partners in shaping a more just and stable future.

This meeting aligns with APLA’s broader vision to enhance Palestinian municipal diplomacy as a soft power instrument that opens new avenues for Palestine within the field of international cooperation, repositioning municipalities as political and humanitarian actors capable of leading their communities toward sustainable, self-reliant development and deep-rooted resilience.