From the Liveblog of
Wednesday, August 28, 2024
Abbas cuts short Saudi trip as PA warns of ‘dangerous consequences’ from West Bank raid
Gianluca Pacchiani is the Arab affairs reporter for The Times of Israel
Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas is cutting short his state visit to Saudi Arabia following the launch of a large-scale IDF operation in the West Bank, the Palestinian news agency Wafa reports.
Abbas’s spokesman Nabil Abu Rudeineh warns that the anti-terror operation in Tulkarem and other areas in the northern West Bank will have “dangerous consequences.”
“Everyone will pay the price” for the escalation, he says in a statement, calling the raid “the continuation of an all-out war on our people, our land and our holy sites” that “will not bring security nor stability to any side.”
He slams the US for its support for Israel and calls it to pressure Jerusalem to stop the fighting. At least nine Palestinian gunmen have been killed in the ongoing operation, according to the IDF.
Abbas arrived in Riyadh on Monday and met Tuesday with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. He had been scheduled to fly to Egypt next.
