Abbas hints at dissolving PA if Israel annexes land
The Israeli plan to apply sovereignty to parts of the West Bank would lead to the dismantlement of the Palestinian Authority, PA President Mahmoud Abbas hinted on Wednesday.
His decision to renounce agreements and understandings with Israel and the US, including security cooperation, does not mean that the Palestinians do not want peace, he said.
If implemented, the annexation plan would mean that Israel would have “to assume its responsibilities over the occupied territories in accordance with the Fourth Geneva Convention,” Abbas said in a speech via video conference before the Arab Parliament, the legislative body of the Arab League.
According to the Geneva Convention relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War, more commonly referred to as the Fourth Geneva Convention: “Persons protected by the Convention are those who, at a given moment and in any manner whatsoever, find themselves, in case of a conflict or occupation, in the hands of a Party to the conflict or Occupying Power of which they are not nationals.”
It also states: “The Occupying Power shall not deport or transfer parts of its own civilian population into the territory it occupies.”
Abbas’s talk about Israel “assuming its responsibilities over the occupied territories” is a clear message that he intends to dissolve the PA if and when the annexation plan is implemented, a PA official said.
In the past, Abbas has made several threats to dismantle the PA and “hand the keys back to Israel” in response to Israeli policies and decisions.
In his speech, Abbas explained that his decision to walk away from the agreements and understandings with Israel and the US was the result of Israel’s failure to adhere to the accords.
“Israel has destroyed these agreements and continues to violate international law, thus destroying the peace process with the backing of the US administration,” he said.
The decision to renounce the agreements and understandings, however, “does not mean that we don’t want peace,” Abbas said. “We extend our hands in peace, and we are prepared to go to an international conference for peace and work through a multilateral mechanism, which is the Quartet [UN, EU, Russia and US] that would sponsor the negotiations on the basis of international legitimacy and the Arab Peace Initiative.”
A Palestinian state already exists “on the 1967 borders, with east Jerusalem as its capital,” he said, adding that 150 states have recognized the Palestinian state, which enjoys observer status at the UN General Assembly and is a member of dozens of international agencies and treaties.
Abbas reiterated his rejection of the annexation plan and US President Donald Trump’s plan for Mideast peace, also known as the “Deal of the Century.”
“We reject the annexation of any inch of the occupied Palestinian territory,” he said. “This illegal move would entail the occupation assuming all responsibilities for the occupied land as an occupying power in accordance with the Fourth Geneva Convention.”
The Palestinians are working with the European Union to take immediate measures to stop the annexation plan and recognize the Palestinian state, Abbas said.
The Palestinians also have “received assurances from all the Arab countries that they are committed to the Arab Peace Initiative, refuse any peace relations with Israel before achieving peace [between Israel and the Palestinians] and reject any normalization steps with Israel,” he said.
In a related development, the PLO Executive Committee, the Fatah Central Committee and the PA government held a joint meeting on Wednesday in the Jordan Valley village of Fasayil to voice their rejection of the annexation plan.
The meeting was intended to send a message to the UN Security Council, the US and Israel that the land belongs to the Palestinians and Arabs, PA Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh said.
“There is no such thing as a big or small annexation,” he said during the meeting. “We are against any annexation.”