Abbas condemns Houla massacre

PA president says he is in contact with both sides of the Syrian conflict

Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas on Sunday condemned the massacre of civilians in the Syrian city of Houla over the weekend.

In an interview with the official Al-Hayat al-Jadida, Abbas said the PA had no intention to intervene in the internal goings on in other Arab states, but that the Palestinians support all peoples striving for self-definition and are against the killing and intimidation of civilians.

Abbas added that the PA was in regular contact with both the Syrian government and representatives of rebel groups.

The killing of more than 100 people in the west-central area of Houla on Friday brought widespread international criticism of the regime of President Bashar Assad, although differences emerged from world powers over whether his forces were exclusively to blame.

The Syrian government denied it was responsible for the attack, blaming a local terrorist group for the violence.