UNITED NATIONS (AP) – Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas declared before world leaders Wednesday that he is no longer bound by agreements signed with Israel, and called on the United Nations to provide international protection for the Palestinian people.
It was Abbas’ most serious warning yet to that he might walk away from engagement with Israel and dissolve the Palestinian Authority, although he stopped short of accompanying his threat with a deadline.
The 80-year-old leader had threatened to drop a “bombshell” in the speech – prompting speculation he would sever ties with Israel over its settlement expansion and other hardline policies.
On Wednesday, he said that Israel’s refusal to commit to agreements signed “render us an authority without real powers.”
“As long as Israel refuses to cease settlement activities and to the release of the fourth group of Palestinian prisoners in accordance with our agreements, they leave us no choice but to insist that we will not remain the only ones committed to the implementation of these agreements, while Israel continuously violates them,” Abbas said.