At the United Nations General Assembly on Thursday, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas expressed his commitment to working with U.S. President Donald Trump, Saudi Arabia, France, and the United Nations on a comprehensive peace plan for Gaza. This plan, which has received overwhelming support from the 193-member UN body, aims to advance a two-state solution and bring an end to the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas militants in Gaza.
The declaration, spanning seven pages, was the outcome of an international conference held in July at the UN, co-hosted by Saudi Arabia and France, focused on addressing the long-standing Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Notably, the United States and Israel boycotted this event and have rejected the international efforts outlined there.
In a related development, U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff revealed that President Trump presented a 21-point peace plan for the Middle East and Gaza during meetings with leaders of several Muslim-majority countries on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly earlier this week.
Due to the U.S. refusal to grant him a visa to travel to New York, Abbas delivered his address to the assembly via video. In his speech, Abbas condemned the actions of Hamas during the October 7, 2023 attack on Israel, stating that such violence did not represent the Palestinian people or their legitimate struggle for freedom and independence.
Abbas reaffirmed that Gaza remains an integral part of the State of Palestine and expressed the Palestinian leadership’s readiness to assume full responsibility for governance and security in the territory. He emphasized that Hamas would have no role in governance and must relinquish its weapons to the Palestinian National Authority, reiterating the Palestinians’ desire not to establish an armed state.
These points align closely with the UN General Assembly’s endorsed declaration. Abbas declared, “We are ready to work with President Donald Trump, with Saudi Arabia, France, the United Nations, and all partners to implement the peace plan” supported by the international community.
The current conflict in Gaza was triggered by the October 7 Hamas attack on Israel, which resulted in the deaths of 1,200 people and the capture of approximately 251 hostages, according to Israeli figures. Since then, over 65,000 people—mostly civilians—have been killed in the ensuing war, as reported by local health authorities, marking one of the deadliest conflicts in recent history.
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