Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas on Monday lashed out at Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei for making comments that his office said was ‘aimed at sacrificing Palestinian blood’.
Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei remarked earlier that the Hamas-led October 7 attack on Israel ‘had happened exactly at the moment the region needed it’.
“(There was a plan) by the US, Zionist individuals, their followers and some of the region’s countries to change the equation in the region,” Khamenei had said.
The Palestinian Authority which exercises partial civil control over West Bank areas as part of the Oslo Accords remains deeply unpopular compared to the militant group Hamas.
Hamas has been heavily and publicly backed by the Iranian regime and Iran considers themselves as the “Axis of Resistance” to Israel and US influence in the Middle East.
The Axis includes not only Hamas, the Palestinian group that ignited the war by attacking Israel on Oct. 7, but also: the Hezbollah movement in Lebanon; the Houthi movement in Yemen; various Shi’ite armed groups in Iraq; and Syria.
Abbas slammed Khamenei and said Palestinian people do not need wars that do not bring them freedom and independence. “(We) do not need wars that do not serve our ambitions for freedom and independence. (These remarks) were clearly aimed at sacrificing Palestinian blood and would not lead to the establishment of an independent Palestinian state,” Abbas’ office said in a statement accessed by news agency The Times of Israel.
Meanwhile, doubts were growing on Monday about a plan for a Gaza ceasefire and hostage release deal outlined by US President Joe Biden, as heavy fighting raged for a third day since his White House address.
Biden on Friday presented what he labelled an Israeli three-phase plan that would end the bloody conflict, free all hostages and lead to the reconstruction of the devastated Palestinian territory without Hamas in power.
However, Netanyahu’s office quickly stressed that Israel would push on with the war sparked by the October 7 attack until all of its “goals are achieved” including the destruction of Hamas’s military and governing capabilities.
Israeli media have questioned to what extent Biden’s speech and some crucial details were coordinated with Netanyahu’s team, including how long any truce would hold and how many captives would be freed when.
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Hamas on Friday said it viewed Biden’s outline “positively”, but since has made no official comment on the stalled negotiations, while mediators Qatar, Egypt and the United States have not announced any new round of talks.
Israeli government spokesman David Mencer on Monday quoted Netanyahu as saying that the outline Biden presented was only “partial” and that under the plan fighting would only stop temporarily “for the purpose of returning the hostages”.
Location: Ramallah, West Bank, Palestinian Territories
first published: June 03, 2024, 20:28 IST
Vikram Sharma is a globe-trotting journalist with a global perspective on international events. His articles offer readers a global perspective on international events, exploring complex geopolitical issues and providing insights into the world’s most pressing challenges.
