Abbas: Hamas Gets No Seat at Table in Postwar Gaza

The Palestinian president, speaking to the UN General Assembly over video after the United States revoked his visa, told world leaders on Thursday that his people "reject" the 2023 Hamas attack on Israel and pledged that the militant group would have no role in governing Gaza after the war ends and must hand over its weapons. Mahmoud Abbas said that Palestinians in Gaza "have been facing a war of genocide, destruction, starvation, and displacement" by Israel. His speech came as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu heads to New York to give his own address in person on Friday, reports the AP.

Despite laying out in gruesome detail the death and destruction in Gaza, Abbas said Palestinian authorities "reject" the action Hamas carried out on Oct. 7 and that it doesn't represent their people. He also laid out his vision for what government would look like in territories once the war is over, saying that the Palestinian Authority is "ready to bear full responsibility for governance and security. He added that "Hamas will have no role to play in governance" and will have to hand over their weapons to the Palestinian authorities. "There can be no justice if Palestine is not freed," Abbas said.

In a short but resolute speech, Abbas thanked the world leaders who've stood up for Palestinians throughout the Gaza war, saying that the recent recognition of Palestinian statehood has presented his people with hope for peace. He welcomed the recent announcements from France, the UK, and Canada to recognize them as an independent state. But, he added, that symbolic recognition isn't enough to address the present moment.

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"The time has come for the international community to do right by the Palestinian people, so that they may obtain their ... legitimate rights to be rid of the occupation and to not remain a hostage to the temperament of Israeli politics," Abbas said. He concluded with a message of hope for the Palestinian people, saying that no matter how long the suffering continues, "its results will not break our will to live and survive." "The dawn of freedom will emerge, and the flag of Palestine will fly high in our skies as a symbol of dignity, steadfastness, and being free from the occupation," Abbas added. "We will not leave our homeland."