Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas has called on Hamas to release all hostages in its custody and surrender its weapons to the PA, making it clear that the terror group will not be allowed to govern the Gaza Strip once the conflict comes to an end.
During a meeting in Amman with former British prime minister Tony Blair, Abbas also demanded that Palestinian prisoners held by Israel be freed, urged for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, and stressed the necessity of unrestricted humanitarian access to the coastal enclave, according to the official PA news outlet WAFA.
Abbas reiterated his desire for the Palestinian Authority to take over control of Gaza—a proposal consistently opposed by Israel. He also emphasized the importance of a two-state solution built on the framework of the Arab Peace Initiative, and called for an international peace summit to be convened in New York, WAFA reported.
While Abbas had previously voiced support for a ceasefire, the release of hostages, and the restoration of PA control in Gaza, it wasn’t until last month that he directly condemned the October 7, 2023, terror assault led by Hamas on southern Israel. That attack, in which 1,200 people—mostly civilians—were murdered, ignited the current war and included the mass abduction of hostages.
At that time, Abbas made it clear that Hamas must not be allowed to continue its rule over Gaza and called on the group to disarm and turn its weapons over to the Palestinian security forces.
Militant groups in Gaza continue to hold 50 hostages. Of the 251 people abducted during the October 7 rampage, 49 remain in Hamas’s hands, according to the IDF. Among them are the confirmed remains of at least 28 individuals. Israeli authorities believe 20 are still alive and have voiced deep concern for the condition of two others. In addition, Hamas is holding the body of an IDF soldier who was killed in Gaza in 2014.
Hamas violently took control of Gaza from the Palestinian Authority in 2007 in a brutal coup. Since then, the terror organization has been locked in a bitter power struggle with Abbas’s Fatah party, which continues to govern the PA from its seat in Ramallah, in the West Bank.
Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu has pledged to dismantle Hamas’s rule in Gaza and has rejected any possibility of the PA stepping in to govern the territory. At the same time, he has not proposed a concrete alternative, largely due to pressure from his far-right coalition allies, many of whom are advocating for the reestablishment of Jewish settlements in Gaza.
The Palestinian Authority, meanwhile, suffers from widespread public distrust and criticism. It is widely regarded as corrupt and ineffective, having failed to conduct parliamentary elections since 2006 and presidential elections since 2005.
{Matzav.com Israel}