Abbas calls for a political solution without escalation in unrest

Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas renewed his desire to reach a political solution with Israel in the West Bank through peaceful means without military or security escalation.

During the Palestine Liberation Organisation Executive Committee meeting, which took place on yesterday at the presidential headquarters in Ramallah, Abbas expressed his willingness to reiterate negotiations in return for halting settlement expansion, releasing 30 detainees who were due to be released under a previous agreement, and discussing the Oslo Accords, stressing on his adherence to those agreements.

“We don’t want a military and security escalation with Israel. All our instructions to our [security] agencies, our factions and our youth have been that we do not want escalation, but rather we want to protect ourselves,” Abbas continued.

He added that he hopes the message is clear to Israelis, and that both Israel and the world would understand it so that all countries would avoid the risks which could result in destruction for all sides.