Abbas Calls on Hamas to Reach Agreement with Israel to Avoid Fighting in Rafah

The head of the Palestinian National Authority, Mahmoud Abbas, has urged the Hamas terrorist organization to reach an agreement with Israel as soon as possible regarding the exchange of hostages and prisoners, in order to prevent further escalation of the situation in the Gaza Strip. This has been reported by Palestinian media.

“In the light of the massive war being waged against the Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, we call on Hamas to expedite the prisoners' exchange deal to save the Palestinian people from a catastrophe that is no less horrific than that of 1948 (the mass exodus following the Arab-Israeli war) and to avoid the occupation of the city of Rafah by Israel,” stated Abbas.

He also called on the U.S. administration and Arab countries to “work seriously to ensure that an agreement is reached as soon as possible, which will help protect the Palestinian people from the ravages of war.”

“It is time for everyone to take responsibility for ending this massive war against the Palestinian people,” Abbas added.

Currently, the Israeli army is preparing to strike the southern part of the Gaza Strip, particularly the city of Rafah, near the border with Egypt, where about 1.5 million of the enclave's 2.3 million residents are taking refuge from the fighting. According to Israeli sources, remnants of Hamas militants have taken refuge in the city. The UN and many countries have called on Israel to abandon these plans.

Abbas pointed out that an attack on Rafah “will lead to thousands of casualties, suffering, and a mass exodus of Palestinians.”