Abbas, in UN speech, blasts Israeli ‘genocide’ in Gaza, sets out 12-point ‘day after’ plan
PA leader urges international protection for Palestinians, strong UNRWA, single government in West Bank, Gaza and East Jerusalem, while never mentioning Hamas; wants Israel out of UN
Jacob Magid is The Times of Israel's US bureau chief
Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas accused Israel on Thursday of waging a “full-scale war of genocide” in the Gaza Strip, and laid out a 12-point vision for post-war management of the enclave, during his address to the UN General Assembly in New York.
Abbas addressed the body almost one year into the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza, which began when terrorists invaded southern Israel last year, killing some 1,200 people and taking 251 hostages. The PA leader’s speech did not refer to the terror group at any point.
He also mentioned the spiraling conflict between Israel and Hezbollah, accusing Israel of “genocide” in Lebanon, but not mentioning the terror group by name.
Abbas began his address by three times declaring, “We will not leave,” adding, “Palestine is our homeland. It is the land of our fathers, our grandfathers. It will remain ours, and if anyone were to leave, it would be the occupying usurpers,” referring to Israel.
Abbas called on Israel to end the war in Gaza, and on the international community to stop its support for the campaign, saying, “The entire world is responsible for what is happening to our people.”
He dismissed Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s claim that Israel doesn’t kill civilians in Gaza, saying, “I ask you, who is it then that killed more than 15,000 children?”
The Hamas-run Gaza health ministry says more than 41,000 people in the Strip have been killed or are presumed dead in the fighting so far, though the toll cannot be verified and does not differentiate between civilians and fighters. Israel says it has killed some 17,000 combatants in battle and another 1,000 terrorists inside Israel on October 7.
Abbas slammed Washington for supporting Israel in the war, noting that “the US administration — the largest democracy in the world — on three occasions obstructed draft resolutions at the Security Council demanding Israel to observe a ceasefire.”
The United States has repeatedly called for a ceasefire in Gaza, and has spearheaded efforts to reach a ceasefire-hostage deal with Hamas to end the fighting; it has insisted, however, that the release of hostages held captive by the terror group be a precondition for ending the war.
“This is the United States — the same country that was the only member in the Security Council that voted against granting the State of Palestine full membership in the UN,” Abbas fumed.
“I don’t understand how the United States could insist on opposing our people, insist on depriving us of our legitimate rights to freedom and independence, as is the right of the rest of the countries,” he said.
Abbas argued that if anything, it is Israel that shouldn’t be allowed membership in the United Nations, pointing to Israeli officials who have called for the institution to be shut down.
Those officials made those calls amid frustration over what has long been seen as the anti-Israel bias of the UN’s institutions and members.
The PA leader indicated that Ramallah will submit a request to have Israel booted from the UN over its violation of various resolutions.
Turning to the West Bank, Abbas highlighted Israeli settler violence and settlement expansion, saying “the West Bank is under a daily and continuous Israeli aggression.”
The territory has also been the site of major counter-terror raids by the Israeli military in recent months, though Abbas did not directly address those operations.
“It is seeing vicious settlement activity. They’re building everywhere in Palestine, as if all of Palestine is theirs,” he said, adding that West Bank Palestinians are “subjected to the terrorism of gangs of settlers under the patronage and support of the Israeli government and the occupying army.”
Of Jerusalem, the PA president said, “Our eternal capital, Al Quds, is being subjected to entrenched campaigns to change its nature — to Judaize it.”
He accused Israel of violating the status quo at the Temple Mount in Jerusalem, apparently referring to National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir in claiming that “a terrorist Israeli minister” has called for building a temple in the Al Aqsa Mosque.
“We must condemn and stop this reckless minister and those like him who want to set fire, a fire of religious conflict and strife that will burn everything in its way,” Abbas continued.
He said the Al Aqsa Mosque compound is the “exclusive property of Muslims,” negating Jewish claims to the site where two ancient Temples once stood.
Day-after plan
Finally, Abbas presented what he said was a 12-point vision for the post-war management of Gaza, welcoming its review and amendment by the international community.
The first clause of the plan, he said, requires a permanent ceasefire in Gaza and an end to attacks by Israeli settlers against Palestinians in the West Bank.
The second clause requires humanitarian aid to be delivered en masse throughout Gaza.
Third, Israel must fully withdraw its forces from Gaza, without establishing any buffer zones, and allow displaced Palestinians to return to their homes, or at least to the since-razed towns where they lived before the war.
Fourth, the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, UNRWA, must be protected and allowed to continue operating, despite Israeli efforts to close it down due to accusations that some of its members took part in the October 7 attacks, and that Hamas has infiltrated it more broadly.
Fifth, Abbas called for “international protection for the Palestinians on their occupied land,” saying, “We are not fighting Israel. We cannot fight Israel, and we don’t want to fight, but we want protection.”
Sixth, the Palestinian government must have jurisdiction over the entirety of the Gaza Strip, including the Rafah Border Crossing and other entry points, Abbas said.
Seventh, the PA will continue its efforts to engage in a “comprehensive national reform process.”
Abbas said Ramallah’s work on reform has been hailed by countries around the world and that it will be essential to rebuilding infrastructure in Gaza destroyed during the war.
Eighth, the Palestinian government will be the sole representative body for Palestinians in Gaza, the West Bank and East Jerusalem and will have authority over all of those territories.
“We will not ask for more, but we will not accept any less,” Abbas said, adding that he is still prepared to hold national elections if Israel allows balloting to take place in East Jerusalem.
Ninth, the Palestinians will continue in their bid to obtain full-member status at the UN.
Tenth, the UN General Assembly resolution ordering an Israeli withdrawal from the West Bank, Gaza and East Jerusalem within a year must be fully implemented in order to actualize a two-state solution.
Eleventh, an international peace conference must be held within a year to implement the two-state vision.
And twelfth, international peacekeeping forces must be established to protect the people of both countries.
“These are the elements of our vision for the day after… And I call upon you to adopt this plan and to provide all the necessary means to guarantee its success,” Abbas said.
Before wrapping up his address Abbas called for the passing of a UN resolution compelling Israel to allow him to visit Gaza.
Abbas announced his intention to visit the war-torn Strip in a speech to the Turkish parliament last month. He has since claimed that Israeli authorities have barred him from entering the coastal enclave.
He welcomed world leaders to join him on the visit “so that we could all see the tragedies that are taking place.”
Danny Danon, Israel’s UN ambassador, responded to Abbas’s speech within minutes with a critical assessment. “Abbas spoke for 26 minutes and did not say the word ‘Hamas’ once.”
“Since the massacre of October 7, Abbas has failed to condemn Hamas for their crimes against humanity,” Danon said.
“Only when he stands on the UN platform does he talk about a peaceful solution,” he continued. “There is no greater hypocrisy and lie than this: Abbas’s legacy is one of chronic weakness in the face of terrorism and hatred.”
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu arrived in New York on Thursday shortly before Abbas spoke, and is set to deliver his own address to the General Assembly on Friday.
AP and Times of Israel staff contributed to this report.
