Latest news with #MahmudAbbas
The Sun
9 hours ago
- Politics
- The Sun
Palestinian Authority condemns Israel's Gaza escalation as new crime
RAMALLAH: The Palestinian Authority has strongly criticised Israel's decision to escalate military operations in Gaza. President Mahmud Abbas described the move as a 'new crime' and urged immediate intervention. The Israeli security cabinet approved plans for a major offensive targeting Gaza City on Friday. The decision has drawn widespread international condemnation. Abbas stressed the need for Palestine to assume full responsibility for Gaza in a statement carried by Wafa. He called for a permanent ceasefire, hostage release, and humanitarian aid access. The Palestinian Authority governs parts of the Israeli-occupied West Bank but not Gaza. Gaza has been under Hamas control for nearly 20 years. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu defended the operation, vowing to 'free Gaza from Hamas'. Netanyahu faces growing pressure to secure a ceasefire amid famine risks in Gaza. Five nations jointly criticised Israel's plan, warning of worsening humanitarian conditions. The Hostages and Missing Families Forum opposed the offensive, citing risks to captives and soldiers. Palestinian officials called the move a direct challenge to international peace efforts. Gaza's health ministry reports over 61,000 Palestinian deaths since the conflict began. Hamas's 2023 attack on Israel killed 1,219 people, according to AFP data. - AFP
New Straits Times
12 hours ago
- Politics
- New Straits Times
Palestinian Authority slams Israel's military expansion in Gaza
RAMALLAH, Palestinian Territories: The Palestinian Authority on Saturday lambasted the Israeli government's decision to expand its military operations in Gaza, with president Mahmud Abbas calling the plan a "new crime" and demanding his organisation take responsibility for the territory. Early Friday, the Israeli security cabinet approved plans for a major operation to seize Gaza City, triggering a wave of criticism from across the globe. In the same meeting, it also adopted a set of principles for concluding the war in Gaza, including demilitarising the territory and establishing a new "administration that is neither Hamas nor the Palestinian Authority" (PA). According a statement carried by the official Palestinian news agency Wafa, PA leader Abbas said the plan "constitutes a new crime", and stressed "the urgent need to take action to stop it immediately." He also emphasised "the importance of enabling the State of Palestine to assume its full responsibilities in the Gaza Strip, and the need for an immediate and permanent ceasefire, the release of hostages and detainees, and the entry of humanitarian assistance." The PA – conceived as a first step towards a Palestinian state – exercises limited administration over parts of the Israeli-occupied West Bank. The territory is home to about three million Palestinians. Excluding Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem, it is also home to around half a million Israelis living in settlements considered illegal under international law. The PA, however, does not have a presence in Gaza, which has been governed by Hamas for nearly two decades. Despite the backlash and rumours of dissent from Israeli top brass, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has remained defiant over the decision. In a post on social media late Friday, Netanyahu said "we are not going to occupy Gaza – we are going to free Gaza from Hamas." The prime minister faces mounting pressure to secure a ceasefire to bring Gaza's more than two million people back from the brink of famine and free the hostages held by Palestinian fighters. A statement issued on Saturday by the foreign ministers of Italy, Australia, Germany, New Zealand and the United Kingdom took aim at the decision to occupy Gaza City. "This will exacerbate the catastrophic humanitarian situation, endanger the lives of hostages, and increase the risk of a mass exodus of civilians," they said. As supporters of the hostages again demonstrated in Tel Aviv on Saturday, Israeli campaign group the Hostages and Missing Families Forum put out a statement condemning the government's war plans. "Expanding the fighting endangers the hostages and the soldiers - the people of Israel are not willing to risk them," it said. Palestinian presidential spokesman Nabil Abu Rudeineh said the new plan was "an unprecedented challenge and provocation to the international will to achieve peace and stability." Israel's offensive has killed more than 61,000 Palestinians, according to Hamas-run Gaza's health ministry, figures the United Nations says are reliable. Hamas's 2023 attack on Israel – which triggered the war – resulted in the deaths of 1,219 people, according to an AFP tally based on official figures.--AFP
Hindustan Times
18 hours ago
- Politics
- Hindustan Times
‘New crime': Palestinian Authority on Israel's escalation plan in Gaza
The Palestinian Authority on Saturday lambasted the Israeli government's decision to expand its military operations in Gaza, with President Mahmud Abbas calling the plan a "new crime" and demanding his organisation take responsibility for the territory. Palestinian Authority President Mahmud Abbas emphasised "the importance of enabling the State of Palestine to assume its full responsibilities in the Gaza Strip,(AFP) Early Friday, the Israeli security cabinet approved plans for a major operation to seize Gaza City, triggering a wave of criticism from across the globe. In the same meeting, it also adopted a set of principles for concluding the war in Gaza, including demilitarising the territory and establishing a new "administration that is neither Hamas nor the Palestinian Authority" (PA). According a statement carried by the official Palestinian news agency Wafa, PA leader Abbas said the plan "constitutes a new crime", and stressed "the urgent need to take action to stop it immediately". He also emphasised "the importance of enabling the State of Palestine to assume its full responsibilities in the Gaza Strip, and the need for an immediate and permanent ceasefire, the release of hostages and detainees, and the entry of humanitarian assistance". The PA -- conceived as a first step towards a Palestinian state -- exercises limited administration over parts of the Israeli-occupied West Bank. The territory is home to about three million Palestinians. Excluding Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem, it is also home to around half a million Israelis living in settlements considered illegal under international law. The PA, however, does not have a presence in Gaza, which has been governed by Hamas for nearly two decades. Despite the backlash and rumours of dissent from Israeli top brass, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has remained defiant over the decision. In a post on social media late Friday, Netanyahu said "we are not going to occupy Gaza -- we are going to free Gaza from Hamas". The prime minister faces mounting pressure to secure a ceasefire to bring Gaza's more than two million people back from the brink of famine and free the hostages held by Palestinian militants. A statement issued on Saturday by the foreign ministers of Italy, Australia, Germany, New Zealand and the United Kingdom took aim at the decision to occupy Gaza City. "This will exacerbate the catastrophic humanitarian situation, endanger the lives of hostages, and increase the risk of a mass exodus of civilians," they said. As supporters of the hostages again demonstrated in Tel Aviv on Saturday, Israeli campaign group the Hostages and Missing Families Forum put out a statement condemning the government's war plans. "Expanding the fighting endangers the hostages and the soldiers - the people of Israel are not willing to risk them," it said. Palestinian presidential spokesman Nabil Abu Rudeineh said the new plan was "an unprecedented challenge and provocation to the international will to achieve peace and stability". Israel's offensive has killed more than 61,000 Palestinians, according to Hamas-run Gaza's health ministry, figures the United Nations says are reliable. Hamas's 2023 attack on Israel -- which triggered the war -- resulted in the deaths of 1,219 people, according to an AFP tally based on official figures.
Express Tribune
31-07-2025
- Politics
- Express Tribune
US hits Palestinian Authority officials with visa ban over statehood recognition
The US visa denials could complicate attendance at the meeting by Palestinian leaders. PHOTO: PIXABAY The United States said Thursday it would deny visas to Palestinian Authority officials, as US allies move to recognize Palestinian statehood. The sanctions come after several states, including France and Canada, announced they would recognize a Palestinian state at the UN General Assembly in September, infuriating Israel and the United States. The US visa denials could complicate attendance at the meeting by Palestinian leaders. France and Saudi Arabia sponsored this week a UN conference designed to resurrect the decades-old idea of a two-state solution, with the argument that only Israeli and Palestinian states co-existing side by side can bring peace to the Middle East. Read More: UAE begins Gaza water pipeline project The United States, which rejects any unilateral recognition of a Palestinian state, called the conference an insult to people killed in the October 7, 2023 Hamas surprise attack that triggered the ongoing Israeli military operation throughout Gaza. The State Department did not specify who was being targeted in this new action, only saying it would deny visas to "members" of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) and "officials" from the Palestinian Authority (PA). The organizations are "taking actions to internationalize its conflict with Israel such as through the International Criminal Court (ICC) and International Court of Justice (ICJ)," the State Department said in a statement. It also accused the groups of "continuing to support terrorism including incitement and glorification of violence," and of "providing payments and benefits in support of terrorism to Palestinian terrorists and their families." The United States in June announced sanctions against four judges at the ICC, saying their indictment of Israeli leaders over the war in Gaza was politically oriented. Israel's Foreign Minister Gideon Saar welcomed the new US sanctions, saying the gesture displayed "moral clarity." Palestinian Authority leader Mahmud Abbas has been widely recognized for years as a key partner in efforts to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The PA is a civilian ruling authority in areas of the Israeli-occupied West Bank, where about three million Palestinians live -- as well as around half a million Israelis occupying settlements considered illegal under international law. Hamas governs the Gaza Strip. The PLO is an umbrella grouping of Palestinian organizations but does not include Hamas, which took power in Gaza in 2007. Founded in 1964, it was led for decades by Yasser Arafat. Also read: Britain warns Israel it will recognise Palestinian state as Gaza starvation spreads Arab and Western countries want the currently weak Palestinian Authority to have some role in governing Gaza once the war ends. President Donald Trump is an unconditional supporter of Israel and has met at the White House three times with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu since returning to power in January, even as Trump seeks an elusive ceasefire in Gaza. The United States has criticized the Palestinian Authority as ineffective and corrupt. Saar echoed the State Department, accusing the Palestinian Authority of paying "terrorists" and their families for attacks against Israeli targets and of inciting people against Israel in schools, textbooks, mosques, and Palestinian media. "This important action by President Trump and his administration also exposes the moral distortion of certain countries that rushed to recognize a virtual Palestinian state while turning a blind eye to the PA's support for terrorism and incitement," Saar wrote on X.
Al Arabiya
31-07-2025
- Politics
- Al Arabiya
Canada intends to recognize Palestinian state at UN General Assembly: Carney
Canada plans to recognize a Palestinian state at the UN General Assembly in September, Prime Minister Mark Carney said Wednesday, a dramatic policy shift that was immediately rejected by Israel. Carney said the move was necessary to preserve hopes of a two-state solution to the Israeli–Palestinian conflict, a long-standing Canadian goal that was 'being eroded before our eyes.' 'Canada intends to recognize the State of Palestine at the 80th Session of the United Nations General Assembly in September 2025,' the prime minister said. It makes Canada the third country, following recent announcements by France and the United Kingdom, that could recognize a Palestinian state in September. Israel blasted Canada's announcement as part of a 'distorted campaign of international pressure.' Asked by reporters if there was a scenario where Canada could change its position before the UN meeting, Carney said: 'There's a scenario (but) possibly one that I can't imagine.' Canada's intention 'is predicated on the Palestinian Authority's commitment to much-needed reforms,' Carney said, referring to the government body led by President Mahmud Abbas, which has civil authority in parts of the Israeli-occupied West Bank. Carney also said it was predicated on Abbas's pledge to 'hold general elections in 2026 in which Hamas can play no part, and to demilitarize the Palestinian state.' With Wednesday's announcement, Carney positioned Canada alongside France, after President Emmanuel Macron said his country would formally recognize a Palestinian state during the UN meeting, the most powerful European nation to announce such a move. The Israeli embassy in Ottawa said 'recognizing a Palestinian state in the absence of accountable government, functioning institutions, or benevolent leadership, rewards and legitimizes the monstrous barbarity of Hamas on October 7, 2023.' PA's Abbas welcomed the announcement as a 'historic' decision, while France said the countries would work together 'to revive the prospect of peace in the region.' Canada's plan goes a step further than this week's announcement by British Prime Minister Keir Starmer. Starmer said the UK will formally recognize the State of Palestine in September unless Israel takes various 'substantive steps,' including agreeing to a ceasefire in Gaza. Carney stressed that Canada has been an unwavering member of the group of nations that hoped a two-state solution 'would be achieved as part of a peace process built around a negotiated settlement between the Israeli government and the Palestinian Authority.' 'Regrettably, this approach is no longer tenable,' he said, citing 'Hamas terrorism' and the group's 'longstanding violent rejection of Israel's right to exist.' The peace process has also been eroded by the expansion of Israeli settlements across the occupied West Bank and east Jerusalem, Carney said. The prime minister said a two-state solution was growing increasingly remote, with a vote in Israel's parliament 'calling for the annexation of the West Bank,' as well as Israel's 'ongoing failure' to prevent humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza.
