Palestinian President calls Hamas ‘sons of dogs’, demands hostage release, group’s disarmament

RAMALLAH: Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has called Hamas “sons of dogs” and called for the disarmament of the group and the release of the Israeli hostages, CNN reported.

He called for stopping the “Israeli genocide that the Gaza Strip is being subjected to” a top priority. He said that the hostages present an excuse for Israel to attack the Gaza Strip. In a televised speech from Ramallah on Wednesday, Abbas said, “Sons of dogs, release the hostages and block their justifications.”

Israel has rejected accusations of genocide, stressing that it is fighting the war in Gaza in self-defence and targets Hamas. Abbas’ remarks are the strongest public criticism of Hamas to date and come amid a renewed push to advance ceasefire negotiations between Israel and Hamas, with Egypt also suggesting the disarmament of the group recently, CNN reported.

In a heated speech, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas angrily calls on Hamas to lay down its arms and hand the running of Gaza to his authority pic.twitter.com/13d1aWYfW1

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Abbas has not outrightly condemned Hamas’ October 7 attack on Israel, however, he has slammed Hamas for it in the past and reiterated his condemnation of attacks against civilians.

He also outlined a vision to create a Palestinian state and demanded an end to the war in Gaza and renewed calls for the unification of Palestinian political factions under the umbrella of the Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO). He also called for the withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza.

He said, “Hamas must end its control over the Gaza Strip, hand over all its affairs to the Palestine Liberation Organisation and the legitimate Palestinian National Authority, and refrain from carrying arms, transforming into a political party that operates according to the laws of the Palestinian state and adheres to international legitimacy.”

In his address, Abbas accused Hamas of inflicting “severe damage to the Palestinian cause” since it took control of the Gaza Strip in 2007.

He said, “It has provided the occupation (Israel) with dangerous free services, whether intentionally or unintentionally, and allowed this criminal occupation to find free justifications for executing its conspiracies and crimes in the Gaza Strip, with one of the most prominent excuses being hostage-taking.”

In response, Hamas rejected claims made by Abbas and questioned his “competence,” saying that he “insists, repeatedly and suspiciously, on placing the responsibility for the crimes of the occupation and its ongoing aggression on our Palestinian people.”

Mahmoud Abbas urged the international community to implement past UN Security Resolutions and hold an international peace conference, according to CNN report.

Hamas and Fatah have a long history of bitter enmity. The two sides have tried and failed multiple times to reach an agreement to unite the two separate territories of Palestine under one governance structure. Since then, Hamas has governed Gaza while the PA governs parts of the West Bank.

Until 2007, the PA held administrative control over Gaza. Hamas secured a win in the 2006 legislative elections in the occupied areas and expelled it from the Gaza Strip. Since then, Hamas has governed Gaza, and the PA governs the territories of the West Bank, CNN reported.

Hamas and Fatah signed a reconciliation agreement in Cairo in October 2017. According to the deal, a new unity government was expected to take administrative control of Gaza after two months. However, aspirations of a deal collapsed when PA Prime Minister Rami Hamdallah visited Gaza in 2018.

Hamdallah was the target of an assassination attempt when a bomb detonated near his convoy. Following the attack, Fatah immediately blamed Hamas for it. In July last year, Hamas and Fatah signed an agreement on “ending division and strengthening Palestinian unity.” (ANI)