Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas condemned Thursday’s normalization agreement between the United Arab Emirates and Israel at a joint meeting of the Palestinian leadership on Tuesday night, and urged other countries to stick to a 2002 proposal that conditions ties with Israel on the creation of a Palestinian state.
“We consider this a stab in the back and we absolutely reject it,” Abbas said.
Israel and the UAE announced an agreement Thursday afternoon to establish full normalized relations. As part of the deal, which solidifies an existing secret relationship forged over joint opposition to Iran, Israel has agreed to suspend its plans to annex some 30 percent of the West Bank.
While UAE officials have consistently described their agreement as a step toward helping Palestinian statehood by halting annexation plans, Abbas criticized those for whom “the Palestinian question begins and ends with annexation.”
“They have tried to portray to the world as though this was some great achievement, this rejection of annexation,” Abbas said.
“You cannot can take our place…Palestine speaks in its own name. She is who will say ‘yes’ or ‘no,” Abbas said. “You [are] not responsible for the Palestinian cause, we alone, the Palestinians here, will speak on behalf of the Palestinian cause.” READ MORE
