Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said today that an international peace conference is necessary to end the war in Gaza and find a permanent political solution that would lead to the establishment of a Palestinian state. In an interview with Reuters from his office in Ramallah, 87-year-old Abbas said the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians in general had reached an alarming stage that required an international conference and assurances from world powers.
“I am for peaceful resistance. I am in favor of negotiations based on an international peace conference and under international auspices that would lead to a solution under the protection of world powers for the establishment of a sovereign Palestinian state in the Gaza Strip, the West Bank and East Jerusalem,” he said.
“Israel broke its promises”
Abbas said that based on a binding international agreement, he would revive the weakened Palestinian Authority (PA), implement long-awaited reforms and hold presidential and parliamentary elections. Abbas said the PA had adhered to all peace agreements signed with Israel, from the 1993 Oslo Accords to others, but that Israel had broken its promises to end the occupation.
“Whoever wins – wins, this will be a democratic election – he said when asked if he would risk holding the election considering the possibility that Hamas could win like in 2006. Abbas said he had planned to hold elections in April 2021, but was told by a European Union envoy that Israel opposed the vote in East Jerusalem, forcing him to cancel the elections.
“Gaza today is not the Gaza you know”
Abbas did not present a concrete vision of the post-war plan discussed with US officials. Under that plan, the PA would take control of the Gaza Strip, home to 2.3 million people.
“Gaza today is not Gaza as you know it. Gaza was destroyed. Its hospitals, schools, infrastructure, buildings, roads and mosques were destroyed. There is nothing left. When we return, we will need resources, Gaza needs reconstruction,” said Abbas and called the US to be responsible for what is happening in the enclave.
“It is the only force capable of ordering Israel to stop the war and fulfill its obligations, but unfortunately it does not do so. America is an accomplice of Israel,” said Abbas.
