Abbas criticizes Israeli attacks and failure of Gaza peace plan at U.N.
By FARMAZ FASSIHI and MAX BEARAK
Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas portrayed Israeli actions in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank as “a malicious colonial scheme” aimed at forcing Palestinians to leave their homeland. But he said he still hoped for “a democratic Palestinian state that respects the rule of law and human rights, a nonmilitarized state that lives in security and peace alongside the state of Israel.”
Abbas addressed the gathering virtually for the second year in a row because the Trump administration refused to grant him a visa. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will speak several hours later to a General Assembly where a majority of members are highly critical of Israel’s conduct in Gaza and many delegations are likely to walk out — as they did last year.
Abbas argued in his recorded speech for a two-state solution, as he has done for decades. He was also sharply critical of Israel, saying the state was prosecuting “a genocidal war that has created an unprecedented humanitarian catastrophe.”
In September, the U.N.’s Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory issued a report saying that Israel had committed genocide in Gaza and that the perpetrators must be held accountable. Netanyahu is also facing a tough election at home, and his political future is uncertain.
Abbas said his hopes for a route to a peaceful coexistence with Israel were at a low point. “The danger is no longer limited to undermining the two-state solution and preventing the realization of the Palestinian state,” he said. “It has now come to threaten the very life and existence of the Palestinian people on their homeland.”
Here’s what else to expect:
— Netanyahu’s address: Facing a critical national election, Israel’s beleaguered leader will be taking the world stage with his political future on the line. He is expected to direct his words largely at the audience back home, analysts say, not at the international community, from which Israel is more isolated than ever.
— A Yemeni presence: An address by Rashad al-Alimi, the leader of Yemen’s internationally recognized, Saudi-backed government, will also be closely watched. A truce four years ago brought a pause in a long civil war with Iranian-backed Houthi militants who control major portions of the country, but that has unraveled. The Houthis have been carrying out attacks against Saudi Arabia that threaten maritime navigation in a critical Red Sea channel for global oil supplies, the Bab el-Mandeb Strait.
— Gaza: A meeting on the sidelines of the General Assembly will focus on the need for humanitarian and healthcare workers to gain greater access to the Palestinian territory, which is largely in ruins from devastating Israeli military waged in response to the deadly Hamas-led attacks on Israel in 2023.
— Protests: Several pro-Palestinian activist groups plan to hold protests against Netanyahu on Thursday outside the U.N. headquarters in midtown Manhattan. Mayor Zohran Mamdani of New York City ran for office vowing to carry out an arrest warrant for Netanyahu issued by the International Criminal Court should he visit New York. But the mayor has since acknowledged that city officials do not have the authority to execute the warrant.
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