From the Liveblog of
Wednesday, April 23, 2025
PA’s Abbas tells ‘sons of dogs’ Hamas to release hostages, remove Israel’s ‘excuses’ for Gaza war
Nurit Yohanan is The Times of Israel's Palestinian and Arab world correspondent
Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas calls on Hamas in a speech to release hostages in order to remove Israel’s pretext to continue its war in Gaza.
“The first priority is to stop the war of extermination in Gaza. It must be stopped – hundreds are being killed every day,” says Abbas. “Why don’t you hand over the hostages?”
Calling Hamas “sons of dogs,” the PA president tells the terror group to “release those you’re holding and put an end to this story. Shut down their [Israel’s] excuses. End it.”
He makes these remarks during a speech at the opening of the PLO Central Council meeting.
Abbas adds that the council rejects Israel’s attempts to uproot Gaza’s residents from their homes, calling it a “new Nakba,” referring to the mass displacement of some 700,000 Palestinians in Israel’s 1948 War of Independence.
“We reject this. It’s an inseparable part of our land — what’s happening in Gaza is also happening in Jenin, everywhere,” he says.
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